The Mil Mi-26 (codename: Halo) is an impressive Russian-built helicopter and currently the largest in the world. The Mi-26 first flew in 1977 and was originally designed to carry heavy cargo to remote destinations unreachable by plane.
The enormous helicopter features rear-loading doors and has a capacity of 20 tonnes. Aviation experts at Key Aero said it is the “undisputed king of military heavy lift helicopters”. The helicopter is 40 metres long, which makes it “taller than a giraffe”, and is also the world’s most powerful.
“Two 11,400bhp engines allow it to carry loads weighing up to 20 tonnes. In 1982, the aircraft set the world record for the heaviest mass lifted to 2,000 metres by carrying a load of 56,768 kilograms, a record that still stands today.”
The aviation gurus said that it is “so big it can operate as a mobile hospital”. The most unusual Mi-26 cargo was a 20-ton, frozen woolly mammoth.
In 1999, the helicopter lifted the remains of a 23,000-year-old frozen Woolly Mammoth that was extracted from the frozen Taimyr Peninsula in Siberia.
Fair Lifts explained: “The Mi-26 is often the first choice for missions that involve transporting heavy machinery, including armoured vehicles, generators, and even small aircraft.
“Its eight-blade main rotor and twin-turbine engines deliver a unique blend of raw power and flight stability, enabling it to operate in some of the world’s harshest environments, from Siberian tundras to Middle Eastern deserts.”
The helicopter remains in active service today, primarily used by the Russian Aerospace Forces, but it also operates in other countries, including China and India.
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