Mil Mi-9

The Mil Mi-9, also called the Mi-8IV, was an airborne command post helicopter developed by the Mil design bureau from the Mi-8T transport helicopter. Its roots lay in the Mi-8VKP, also known as the Mi-8VzPU, which military units converted from Mi-8T helicopters in the early 1970s, drawing on their experience with similar command post conversions of the Mi-4. For the Mi-9 the transport equipment and weapons were removed, the suspension frame was kept, and a reduced version of the Mi-6VKP command complex was installed. The first series command post of this kind appeared in 1977 and was built until 1987. It carried a package of radio stations and transmitters and was intended for the commanders of motorised rifle, tank and aviation divisions. The Mi-19 later took over the role on the Mi-8MT airframe.