Russian state leasing company GTLK has signed a follow-on agreement with Russian Helicopters covering 72 Mil Mi-8MTV-1s, with the first rotorcraft under the pact set to arrive from the Kazan helicopter plant this year.

The deal extends a relationship that has already produced aircraft. GTLK previously reached an agreement for 86 Mi-8s, which operators received over the course of 2023-26. The follow-on order takes the total commitment under the investment project to more than 150 helicopters.

GTLK values the overall project at nearly Rb50 billion ($587 million). Russia's national welfare fund is financing half of that cost; the lessor covers the remainder.

The Russian ministry of industry and trade is supporting the production effort, which GTLK frames as an investment project to upgrade the country's rotorcraft fleet.

Who is paying — and why?

The financing structure places state resources directly behind the programme. By splitting the Rb50 billion cost between the national welfare fund and its own balance sheet, GTLK is backing serial Mi-8MTV-1 production at a scale few commercial helicopter deals reach.

"This is a direct continuation of our systematic work," GTLK chief executive Mikhail Parnev said. "With the support of the Russian government, through preferential leasing, we are meeting demand for domestically produced equipment, promoting the development of Russian mechanical engineering, and creating the conditions for improving transport connectivity across the country's regions."

The statement positions the order as industrial policy as much as fleet planning: preferential leasing channels demand toward domestic manufacturers while extending air connectivity to regions that depend on helicopter transport.

What replaces what?

The Mi-8 family carries out a wide range of aerial work — passenger and cargo transport, medical evacuation, firefighting, construction and rescue operations. The MTV-1 variant brings higher maximum take-off weight and greater payload capacity than baseline versions.

Vladimir Artyakov, first deputy general director of state technology firm Rostec, parent of Russian Helicopters, said the new rotorcraft will "replace older aircraft being retired from the fleet, which will improve the safety and reliability of air travel."

That points to a replacement cycle rather than net fleet growth: aged Mi-8s reaching retirement are being swapped for MTV-1s, sustaining capacity rather than expanding it.

A pattern, not a one-off

The 72-unit order follows the 86 helicopters delivered across 2023-26, indicating a steady production cadence at Kazan rather than a single surge. GTLK expects the first aircraft under the new agreement within the year, keeping the delivery pipeline continuous as the earlier batch completes.

For operators in remote regions, where the Mi-8 remains the workhorse for missions from medevac to cargo lift, the transaction secures supply of the type for years ahead. For Russian Helicopters, it anchors Kazan's production line with state-backed demand.

With more than 150 helicopters now covered under the investment project and half the Rb50 billion cost financed by the national welfare fund, the programme stands as one of the largest sustained rotorcraft commitments in the Russian market — and deliveries from the new tranche will test Kazan's ability to hold the pace set over the past three years.