French Aerospace Companies Ready to Work With Russia in Making Helicopters

GIFAS, the French aerospace industries association, is open for cooperation with Russia in the area of light helicopters production if helicopters are certified by European organizations, according to Thomas Chatel, a manager in charge of Europe, Russia and Turkey at GIFAS.

ZHUKOVSKY (Sputnik) — GIFAS, the French aerospace industries association, is open for cooperation with Russia in the area of light helicopters production if helicopters are certified by European organizations, Thomas Chatel, a manager in charge of Europe, Russia and Turkey at GIFAS, told Sputnik.

"We hope that in the field of light helicopters, we will have some opportunities to cooperate more closely. In principle, all civilian helicopters provide an opportunity for cooperation between France and Russia. And we, first of all, can provide aviation equipment and engines, because this is key for light Russian helicopters… And I think that if the Russian side will have an interest in using our equipment in its helicopters in the future, of course we are open to all kinds of cooperation," Chatel said on the sidelines of MAKS-2017 air show.

According to Chatel, GIFAS wants to be sure that all the cooperation that will be established with Russian companies can be certified in Europe.

"We must be sure that Russian products can be certified not only by the Russian authorities, but also by international organizations, in particular by the European Aviation Safety Agency," Chatel added.

The 13th International Aviation and Space Salon MAKS-2017 kicked off on Tuesday and will last through Sunday.