Mi-17-1VA Hip-N, two Mi-8Ts and
a Mi-8PS are part of the Eskadrila
transportnih helikoptera (ETH,
Transport Helicopter Squadron)
at Divulje heliport near Split. The
unit is famous in Croatia for its
frequent medical and search and
rescue (SAR) operations at sea and
in the mountains, the latter with
Hrvatska gorska služba spašavanja
(HGSS, Croatian Mountain Rescue
Service) teams on board.
In 2014, the squadron took
part in humanitarian relief efforts
during major floods in the
region, sending two helicopters
to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
A boost in helicopter transport
capacity came with ten new NVG-
equipped Mi-171Sh helicopters,
produced at the Ulan-Ude
factory and delivered in 2007 and
2008 to settle part of Russia’s
debt to the countries of former
Yugoslavia. They were based at
Lučko heliport, where the squadron
was renamed as the Eskadrila
višenamjenskih helikopera (EVH,
Utility Helicopter Squadron).
The helicopters can carry up
to four B-8M1 rocket pods,
each containing 20 80mm S-8
unguided rockets; the EVH is also
trained for combat search and
rescue (CSAR) in co-operation
with the OSRH’s Zapovjedništvo
specijalnih snaga (ZSS, Special
Operations Forces Command).
Equipped with the new type,
Croatia began international
peacekeeping tasks and since July
2009 the HRZ has been present
with two helicopters at Camp
Bondsteel in Kosovo (see Keeping
the fragile peace, July 2017).
The HRVCON Croatian
detachment flies on behalf of
the commander of the NATO-led
Kosovo Force (KFOR), transporting
crowd and riot control (CRC)
teams, VIPs, troops and materiel.
The Mi-171Shs’ service life
expired last year, and at the end
of November the Zrakoplovno-
tehnički centar (ZTC, Aeronautical
Technical Centre) at Velika Gorica
signed a contract for general
overhaul with co-operation from
Russian Helicopters. Work was
due to finish as AFM went to press.
The process of choosing a
partner was long, and the ETH
at Divulje had to transfer some
of its older Hip helicopters to its
colleagues at the EVH at Lučko.
This included deployment to
Kosovo of a pair of Mi-8MTVs.
In recent years the Mi-8Ts,
Mi-8MTVs and Mi-17 have been
overhauled in a co-operation
between ZTC and companiesfrom Azerbaijan, the Czech
Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine.
Since September 2010, Croatian
Hip crews from both squadrons
have been part of the NATO
Rotary Wing Air Advisory Teams
(AAT) in Afghanistan, serving
in Kabul, then Mazar-e-Sharif,
and now in Kabul again. They
participate in training and
mentoring of pilots and ground
crews for the Afghan Air Force’s
Mi-17 V-1 and Mi-17 V- 5 helicopter s.
A Croatian pilot was among
a multinational crew of an
Afghan Mi-17V-5 (serial 707)
that crashed, without fatalities,
near Kunar in June 2011.
For the Afghan mission, the Air
Advisory Team Pre-deployment
Training Course (AAT-PTC) was
set up at Zemunik. Making
use of the topographic and
meteorological conditions in the
nearby Velebit Mountains – which
compare with those in Afghanistan- multinational helicopter
crews train to standardise
procedures and increase
interoperability and efficiency.
The course, co-designed by the
Croatian and Czech teams in 2012
with advisory support from the
US Special Operations Command
Europe, has been accepted as
part of NATO’s ‘Smart Defence’
initiative. Last year, the 17th
course included Croatian, Czech,
Hungarian and Slovak teams.
Part of the training is usually
conducted on a Mi-171Sh
simulator at Ostrava Helicopter
Training Point (HTP) in the Czech
Republic, which also organises
multinational Simulator Hip Cup
competitions. In September 2016
a Croatian crew from the EVH
squadron was judged second-best
overall, winning in three categories,
including precise IFR take-off.Mi-8T serial 274 is one of two veteran ‘Hip-Cs’ still in the HRZ inventory. Jadranko EćimovićNEXT MONTH:
The second part of this Force
Report covers the HRZ’s training
programme, fi refi ghting fl eet
and prospects for the future.Soviet-made Mi-8MTV ‘Hip-H’
helicopters are the real
workhorses of the HRZ. In
the summer the ‘Hips’ are
often used to support local
fi refi ghters. Jadranko Ećimović
AFM#363 JUNE 2018 // 109