picture 185659

Thanks to financial support from abroad, the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo was quick in acquiring several Mil Mi-8MTV-1 transport helicopters for the Armija BiH. By March 1993, 12 of these were in operational service. While some were based at Tuzla, most were operated from Croatia, to and from which they ran several crucially important ‘air bridges’ to Bosniak-controlled parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. All were originally left in the livery of their operators in the former USSR, such as Aeroflot. Some had only crudely overpainted serial numbers and national markings, and most received red crosses (indicating their deployment for medical purposes). Some received civilian registrations, such as T9-HAA in this case. Another known example was the former RA-27085, which did not receive any Bosnian markings, but did have a weather radar installed low on the front fuselage. (Artwork by Tom Cooper)