Not only the Ansat, but also the heavy Altius drone will take off on the latest VK-650V engine

Recently, an important event for our aircraft industry took place in Russia. The Ansat helicopter, equipped with the latest domestic onboard radio-electronic equipment and other import-substituted systems, including two VK-650V engines, was presented in Moscow.

At the same time, the power plants of the rotary-wing aircraft attract special attention here. The thing is that this engine is the first fully Russian model in the 650-750 hp power class, designed to replace foreign analogues.



The VK-650V has already successfully passed preliminary and endurance tests, and is now preparing for flight design tests as part of the Ansat, which should be completed with certification by the end of this year.

Let us recall that the development of the VK-650V engine started in 2019. The unit is capable of operating at an altitude of up to 7 km at temperatures from -55 to +60 degrees Celsius. It is worth noting that the engine was created using a "digital twin", which made it possible to reduce the work period from 10-15 years to 5.

It is important that this power plant will become a key element not only for the Ansat, Ansat-U and Ka-226T helicopters, but also for aircraft and drones. In particular, the Yak-152, a training aircraft, will be able to use the VK-650V instead of the German diesel engine, which has been banned from being supplied to the Russian Federation since 2022. Adaptation of the engine will allow the winged machine to be launched into serial production.

The VK-650V can also be used as part of drones such as the Altius, the development of which was also suspended due to sanctions. This UAV was recently shown to the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy during his visit to Tatarstan, which “hints” at the active continuation of work on the project.

In addition, in the future, a fully domestic helicopter engine will become the basis for hybrid power plants that will be used in tiltrotor aircraft, transport UAVs and regional ultra-short takeoff aircraft.

Thus, the entry of the VK-650V into the Ansat flight design testing stage marks a significant achievement in Russian aircraft manufacturing and opens up new prospects for the country’s aviation industry.