Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of the Golden Eagles, the pilots group that is the symbolic calling card of the Russian helicopter industry.

Based at the Russian Army’s Flight Training Centre in Torzhok, the Golden Eagles are one of the few helicopter pilots groups anywhere in the world to perform flight acrobatics in both the horizontal and vertical positions at low altitude.

Russian Helicopters, a leading global designer and manufacturer of helicopters and producer of some of the world’s most iconic, innovative and widely operated models, congratulates the Golden Eagles on their 20th anniversary.

It is the Golden Eagles’ stunts in the renowned Mi-24 attack helicopters that spectators see at the Zhukovsky air shows near Moscow; and these helicopters took part in ceremonial parades of military hardware on Red Square.

The pilots will mark this anniversary in new helicopters – the Mi-28N Night Hunter, which was adopted as the Russian Armed Forces main attack helicopter by presidential decree from 15 October 2009, and the all-weather day-night Ka-52 Alligator, which Russian Helicopters supplies under the state defence procurement programme.

To mark the occasion, Russian Helicopters’ new light, multi-role Ansat-U were demonstrated in Torzhok, alongside the Mi-26, the heaviest-lift helicopter in the world, and the stalwart Mi-8 – the fleet of training, multi-role and military transport helicopters is constantly being upgraded.

The foundation stone of a memorial to pilots who died in the line of duty was also laid.

Russian Helicopters press release