Mil Mi-26

The Mil Mi-26 (Russian: Миль Ми-26, NATO reporting name: Halo) is a Soviet/Russian heavy transport helicopter. In service with civilian and military operators, it is the largest and most powerful helicopter ever to have gone into production. Following the incomplete development of the Mil V-12 in the early 1970s, work began on a new heavy-lift helicopter, designated "Project 90" and later allocated designation Mi-26. The new design was required to have an empty weight less than half its maximum takeoff weight. The helicopter was designed by Marat Tishchenko, protégé of Mikhail Mil, founder of the experimental OKB Mil design bureau. The Mi-26 was designed as a heavy-lift helicopter for military and civil use, and was to replace earlier...