Rotorcraft
Russian firm testing low-cost helo engine
St.

St. Petersburg, Russia-based engine manufacturer Klimov is offering the VK800, a new turboshaft in the 600- to 1,000-shp range, as a low-cost alternative to Western helicopter engines. The company claims the engine is the first clean-sheet design since the Soviet era. Certification is pegged for 2009.

According to a spokesman, the company has now started testing the engine after formally announcing the program in June. Klimov has also signed an agreement with Ufa to manufacture some parts. Klimov will make the rest of the parts and be responsible for final assembly.

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