Hungary's Ministry of Defense has revealed that their Mi-17 helicopters were officially put back in service on Tuesday.
During a "welcome back to the fleet" ceremony, held in Szolnok, István Simicskó, minister of Defence said the helicopters underwent complete overhauls after the government called for an open tender for the maintenance work.
The contract, worth 3.9 billion HUF (12.8m EUR), was won by Russia‘s Vertolety Rossii, the minister said.
According to MTI, the overhauls covered upgrades to the helicopters’ engines and airframe structures and the company also changed their rotor blades, tail rotor blades, electrical wiring, contactors and hydraulics.
Reports suggest the upgraded helicopters will be kept in service for eight more years or until they rack up 2,000 flight hours.
The minister added that the helicopter overhauls are in line with Hungary’s fulfilment of its commitments to NATO.
Minister Simicskó noted that the ministry’s ten-year comprehensive military development program Zrínyi 2026 which includes upgrading the military’s helicopters.