AAF Helicopters
On the operational side, additional Mi-17 deliveries anticipated for the summer of 2012 were to complete the contingent of 56 aircraft providing Afghanistan’s primary tactical air mobility support for the six ANA corps. Recapitalization of the Mi-17 fleet had also been initiated to replace aircraft that suffered irreparable damage during 2011. This recapitalization would also ensure the fleet remained healthy for the foreseeable future.
As of March 2012, there remained significant debate about the proposed force structure end state, especially with regards to equipment. Most importantly, the 86 Mi-17 helicopters programmed for the post-2014 AAF fleet would meet only minimal operational requirements, even assuming that the insurgency would weaken.
As of 31 March 2013, there were 38 Mi-17 helicopters in the AAF inventory, 29 of which were operational, plus an additional 10 Mi-17s on loan to the Afghan National Army Special Operation Command's Special Mission Wing. The final 12 Mi-17s were expected to be delivered between August and October 2013, bringing the total number of Mi-17s to 60. These problems were compounded by the findings of a Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction report in June 2013, which suggested that the Special Mission Wing could not operate or maintain the planned 48 Mi-17 helicopters it was to acquire, so as to reduce dependency on the AAF fleet.
As of July 2013, the AAF was expecting to retire its Mi-35 fleet in 2016. As of July 2013, only 2 of 6 Mi-35s with remaining service life were available at any time due to a shortage of spare parts. At that time, the AAF was conducting autonomous patrols with the Mi-35 in the Kabul area and training crews to perform armed overwatch/escort and air to ground operations. Close air support capability was expected to come in the form of aircraft acquired under the much delayed Light Air Support (LAS) program. A new source selection had been completed on 27 February 2013. Based on the source selection date, aircrew and maintenance personnel were expected to begin training in May 2014. The first aircraft deliveries to Afghanistan would begin 18 months after contract award, which was expected for August 2014, at a rate of 2 aircrafts per month for 10 months. The full employment of CAS capability was not expected until sometime post-2018.
The United States purchased a total of 63 Mi-17V-5 military transport helicopters from Russia for use by the Afghan National Army. US defense officials had requested Congressional funds for 2014r "to provide additional enhancements for the Afghan National Security Forces". The 15 Russian-built Mi-17s were slated to be purchased by the Pentagon next year for $345 million and then given to Afghan national security forces,
The United States scrapped plans to purchase additional helicopters from state-run Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport amid pressure from federal lawmakers over Russian arms deliveries to Syria, a top US senator said 13 November 2013. “I applaud the [US] Defense Department’s decision to cancel its plan to buy 15 additional Mi-17 helicopters from Rosoboronexport,” US Sen. John Cornyn said in statement. Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, has been leading a push in Congress to oppose the Pentagon’s purchase of Russian helicopters for deployment in Afghanistan due to Moscow’s weapons shipments to the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad as his forces battled rebel groups in a fierce civil war.
The Mi-17 helicopter conducts day and night personnel transport, CASEVAC, resupply, close combat attack, aerial escort, and aerial assault missions. Not including the SMW’s 36 Mi-17s, as of late 2015 the AAF had 49 Mi-17s with an associated 86 fully trained pilots. Fourteen Mi-17s were currently configured with fixed forward firing capability and seven of those are also capable of employing rockets.
The Mi-17 fleet remained the workhorse of the AAF, yet this capability is still unable to meet the ground forces’ demand. This is primarily due to a lack of aircraft availability resulting from phased inspection requirements and challenges in the availability and training of AAF maintenance personnel. Moreover, this gap was likely to grow as the demand for the Mi-17 fleet continues to increase and the overall capability remains relatively static or even decreases due to aircraft losses and increased requirements for aircraft overhauls due to high utilization rates. In an effort to alleviate the strain on the Mi-17 fleet, coalition advisors awarded a contract for rotary-wing airlift in September 2015 to provide cargo, personnel, and human remains movement for the ANDSF. This will relieve the unsustainable demand on the Mi-17 fleet and allow for a greater focus on training aircrews to employ aerial fires.
As of December 1, 2015, armed Mi-17s accounted for 80 percent of the aerial fires missions tasked in support of ANDSF operations during 2015. TAAC-Air has worked to expand Mi-17 capabilities, assisting the AAF in developing proficiency to deliver aerial fires.
By 2015 the AAF had an adequate number of Mi-17 aircrews to operate the current fleet, but further training was required to increase their capabilities. During late 2015, Mi-17 gunship qualified aircrews expanded from 12 to 19, including 2 qualified AAF instructor pilots. Coalition advisors also assisted the AAF expand its Mi-17 night employment capability.
By 2018 the AAF was capable of deploying and operating Mi-17s throughout the country. Thirteen Mi-17s can be configured for a fixed-forward-firing capability, including 11 capable of employing rockets. Armed Mi-17s accounted for more than 28 percent (128/454) of the aerial fires missions tasked in support of ANDSF operations during the reporting period. Using the Mi-17s as armed gunships limits the AAF’s ability to employ Mi-17s in support of other mission sets,such as MEDEVAC and aerial resupply. The AAF has proven more than capable of maintaining the Mi-17. However, advisors continue to stress better maintenance and more disciplined use of the Mi-17. Furthermore, advisors mentor the AAF on flying hour program management to preserve the rotary-wing capability while the AAF integrates the UH-60 fleet.
The Afghan military gained new air capability with light, agile helicopters used for providing close air support and engaging insurgents in remote terrain. Deliveries of additional MD530F helicopters began to the Afghan National Army in April 2015.
Twelve additional MD-530F helicopters equipped with air-to-ground attack capability were on contract, as was conversion of five existing MD-530F helicopters to air-to-ground attack capability, thereby providing the AAF with 17 attack helicopters.
The MD-530 helicopter provides close air attack and aerial escort capability intended to help fill the current aerial fires gap. Following a second round of deliveries in June 2015, the AAF operated 10 armed MD-530s from Kabul, each equipped with a fixed forward firing capability to provide aerial fires. Six additional weaponized MD-530s are scheduled for delivery in early 2016. Given the ANDSF capability gap in aerial fires, in July 2015 the United States approved a requirement for an additional 12 aircraft. These aircraft were delivered during the course of the 2016 fighting season, eventually bringing the fleet to 28 armed MD-530s.
The AAF’s MD-530s relied on a DoD CLS contract; however, the AAF was building an organic maintenance capability for the MD-530. TAAC-Air is working with the AAF to increase the number of MD-530 pilot and maintenance students in training to maximize independence and sustainability of the fleet.
MD-530s made significant contributions between December 1, 2017, and May 1, 2018, conducting 201 air strikes while participating in Afghan-led aerial escorts, close air attacks protecting forces in contact, and deliberately planned strike missions. Aircrew manning improved for the MD-530 fleet, with crew ratios rising from 30 percent to 79 percent of authorized levels. Aviation maintenance training is ongoing and progressing well. Currently, the AAF has the capability to support MD-530 operations at forward-deployed locations for short intervals without CLS presence. The AAF will continue to require CLS and supporting training contracts to maintain combat capability in the mid-term.
In late December 2015, India delivered the first of four planned Mi-25 attack helicopters to the Afghan government as part of their assistance to the country's army as well. The helos were taken to Afghanistan in a C-17 transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force. India’s Mi-25 helicopters are the export version of the old Soviet Union’s Mi-24D helicopters.
Afghanistan had repeatedly sought Indias support in beefing up its military fighting capability in terms of machinery, India had shied away till now. The development came after the recent visit of Afghan National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar to New Delhi. Afghanistan had till now been dependent on the US air support in its operations against the Taliban.
Afghanistan during President Hamid Karzai’s rule, sought military hardware from India but the deal did not go through during the UPA government. The equipment requested by the Afghan government in 2013 included tanks and artillery to boost land-based firepower; Kabul had asked for helicopters but these were for medical evacuation and not attack helicopters.
The Afghan Air Force (AAF) received its first U.S.-made UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters as part of a planned replacement of its aging fleet of Russian-made helicopters. "The first Afghan Air Force UH-60s arrived today at Kandahar Air Field" in southern Afghanistan, the NATO-led Resolute Support mission said in a statement 18 September 2017. "The AAF is transitioning from the Mi-17 to the UH-60 as part of recapitalization efforts to modernize the helicopter fleet," it added.
Afghanistan expected to get up to 200 helicopters and other aircraft as part of a four-year plan to improve the nation's security forces to help beat the Taliban insurgency, according to Dawlat Waziri, the spokesman for the Afghan Defense Ministry. Waziri said 29 March 2017 discussion of the plan is part of the agenda of a top level US delegation expected to visit Kabul. US officials had not publicly confirmed the reported trip, but their Afghan counterparts have been discussing the expected agenda.
Afghanistan received the first batch of U.S.-made UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the United States. At a ceremony 09 October 2017 at Kandahar Airfield in southern Afghanistan, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani formally accepted the first two helicopters, calling it a "historic day." The United States planned to provide the Afghan air force with 159 Black Hawks in the coming years as part of efforts to significantly transform the fledgling Afghan air force. "It's a modernization of their program that will allow them to project power throughout Afghanistan," said Lieutenant Colonel Trent Alexander, a U.S. military adviser to the Afghan air force. "While transitioning to the Black Hawk will not be a quick task, it will not be a difficult task."
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