MINSK, 27 July (BelTA) - Belarus finished second in the 2018 FAI World Helicopter Championship in Minsk, with one of the Belarusian crews claiming a medal in the individual standings for the first time, BelTA learned from the Belarusian Federation of Air Sports.
According to the federation, it was the best ever performance of the Belarusian helicopter pilots. Russia took gold in the team standings. Poland came in third.
In the crew standings Maksim Sotnikov and Oleg Puodzhukas of Russia defended the champion title. Silver went to Russia's Andrei Orekhov and Vadim Sazonov. Bronze was collected by Belarus' Aleksei Mochansky and Anton Danchenko.
The Belarusian crew of Vladimir Bugayev and Andrei Rogonov clinched gold in parallel fender rigging. The pilots train in the Vitebsk aero club. “The Belarusian national team did very well at the championship. Minsk and Vitebsk pilots are among the world's best helicopter aviators today,” Secretary General of the Belarusian Federation of Air Sports Anton Bystrov.
Russian pilot Oleg Puodzhukas took note of a high level of the organization of the championship in Minsk. “Helicopter sport is well developed in Belarus. Russia and Belarus are the one school. We have also taught Poles who demonstrate tough competition today. We try hard to share our best practices with other countries,” he said.
Taking part in the competitions were 36 crews from different countries. Russia deployed 13 crews. Pilots from Poland, Austria, Germany, China and Ukraine also competed for medals. National teams performed on Mi-2 and Robinson-44 helicopters.
The annual aviation festival # PRONEBO will be held as part of the championship on 28-29 July. Visitors will see more than 30 aircraft, including balloons to airplanes. Helicopter racing will be one of the most spectacular events of the festival.
