The massive Mil Mi-26 'Halo' is currently the world's largest production helicopter and the first to be fitted with an incredible eight-blade rotor. It was designed as a transports for both the Soviet air force and Aeroflot with the requirement of being able to take off with double its empty weight, a feat accomplished in no small part thanks to the rotor. The fuselage can accomodate up to 90 combat troops in its main hold which is only slightly smaller than that of the C-130 transport! Other features include a rear-loading ramp, a non-retractable tricycle undercarriage, advanced flight controls and a closed-circuit TV system to observe positioning and loading operations. Besides Russia and the Ukraine, it has been exported to a number of countries including Greece, India, Laos, Mexico, Peru, South Korea and Venezuela.

First flight of the Mi-26 was on 14 December 1977 and it entered service in 1983. It is currently in the process of being upgraded to Mi-26M standards with new uprated engines, superior performance figures and heavier payload capacity. Other variants include the Mi-26MS medical evacuation version, the the Mi-26T freight transport and the Mi-26TZ fuel tanker with large refueling nozzles for both aircraft and vehicles which can be removed for basic transport missions. A passenger airliner variant is known as the Mi-26P and can carry 63 passengers.