Defense: Rotary-Wing Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest
December 22, 2017
Face To Face With The Hind!
A Czech Republic Mil Mi-35 Hind was photographed from the air at the recent International Sanicole Airshow in Hechtel, Belgium.

Italian Navy SH90
An Italian Navy SH90 mutirole helicopter hovers above the sea in a simulated anti-submarine warfare exercise.

Helicopter Corral
Helicopters "fly the pattern" in the Ultralight area at a recent EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, Wisconsin, event. The Ultralight runway flight schedule is broken into periods to allow similar aircraft in the pattern at the same time.

The Last Flight
A Bell 412 is seen in action in an oil field in Eastern India. This mission was the last crew change of the day.

Flying With Stalions
An Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53D ('Yas'ur 2025) Sea Stallion flies along the Tel Aviv coastline, just above the harbor.

Beach Patrol
A Spanish Police Force Eurocopter EC135 "Angel 31" flies above Maspalomas Beach in the Canary Islands.

Fort Saint John, British Columbia, Take Off
An Erickson S-64F Air-Crane takes off from Fort Saint John, British Columbia, en route to Alberta.

Break, Break...Break!
A Sikorsky MH-65D Dolphin breaks right as an MH-60T Jayhawk, trailing close behind, breaks left during a training mission. Both aircraft are based at U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Michigan. The air station recently transitioned from the Dolphin to the Jayhawk.

Air and Land Forces
The Latvian Border Guard monitor Russia/Belarus Zapad-2017 wargame maneuvers conducted on Aug. 18, 2017, near the border in Latvia's Karsava district.

Jayhawk Overhaul
A U.S. Coast Guard Sikorsky MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter undergoes maintenance at the Coast Guard Aircraft Logistics Center in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, on Aug. 10, 2017.

USCG on the Scene . . . Always Ready!
A Sikorsky MH-60T Jayhawk stationed at the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Michigan, stands by for hoist training with a USCG 45-ft. Response Boat.

Royal Navy Merlin Helicopters Above the River Dart
Two Royal Navy Merlin helicopters fly 100 ft. above sea level in close formation above the River Dart in Dartmouth, England.

Making Waves
One of the Spanish Canary Islands search-and-rescue PZL Sokol W.3 helicopters conducts exercises with an emergency response vessel off the Gran Canaria coast.

Fast Special Forces 50 m From Russian Border During Russian-sponsored Wargames
The Latvian Border Guard monitor Russia/Belarus Zapad-2017 wargame maneuvers conducted on Aug. 18, 2017, near the border in Latvia's Karsava district.

Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer and MH-65D
A U.S. Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer prepares to descend from a Eurocopter MH-65D to a Navy 44 Sloop during U.S. Naval Academy exercises on April 1, 2017.

USCG Jayhawk Overhauled
A Coast Guard Eurocopter MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter poses in front of the Coast Guard Aircraft Logistics Center in Elizabeth City, North Carolina on Aug. 10, 2017.

Whiteout
Helicopter in snowstorm.

Patrolling Green Border
Photo taken during Russia/Belarus Zapad-2017 wargame maneuvers conducted on Aug. 18, 2017, near the border in Latvia's Karsava district.

Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer and MH-65D
The Coast Guard rescue swimmer recovery on a MH-65D 6509 at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on April 1, 2017.

Sunset Rescue
On Aug. 5, 2017, as I was setting up to grab a few shots of the sunset at Moraine Lake in Alberta, I witnessed the culmination of an incredible helicopter rescue. The helicopter appeared on the horizon and as it came closer it was apparent two people were hanging beneath it from a long cable. Flying in and banking right over the lake, the helicopter lowered them down.

Bulgarian Navy AS-565 Panthers In Close Formation
A pair of Bulgarian Navy Airbus Helicopters AS-656 Panthers shown in close formation during a training flight over the Black Sea in April 2017.

Border Guard Taxi Arriving
Photo taken on Sept. 29, 2017. Latvian Border Guard exercises for special force 'Sigma' extraction in Latvia's Ludza district.

Apache And Black Hawk
Army demo at Rhode Island Air Show held at Quonset State Airport features Boeing Apache and Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopters.

Skyway To Clear Waters
A pair of U.S. Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopters based out of Air Station Clearwater conducts a photoflight over Tampa's Skyway Bridge—shot off the coast of Tampa Florida.

Break Right!
The pilots of an Royal Canadian Air Force CH-146 Griffon helicopter break hard right low over the trees of the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in northern Alberta to evade a simulated shoulder-mounted missile attack during a mission as part of the Maple Flag multinational air combat training exercise on June 8, 2017.

Water Bird
Photo taken on Sept. 29, 2017 during Latvian Border Guard exercises in the Ludza district of Latvia.

Teamwork
Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 '"Yasur 2025" hovers above a medic from the elite Unit 669 during a demo at Hatzerim AFB, Israel.

Border Guards Never Sleep
The photo taken on Sept. 29, 2017, at a Latvian Border Aviation unit main base in Ludza, Latvia.
This year's rotary-wing aircraft entrants feature an interesting mix of military (including paramilitary) and civil helicopters. But all these images share one trait — the wonder of rotary-wing flight.
Winners of Aviation Week's 2017 Photo Contest
2017 Photo Contest Editor's Picks
Meet the Winning Photographers
Aviation Week's 2017 Photo Contest Judges
Commercial Aviation — 2017 Photo Contest Entries
Commercial: Widebody Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest Submissions
Space: Launch Phase — 2017 Photo Contest
Defense: Rotary-Wing Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest
Defense: Military Aerial Display Teams — 2017 Photo Contest
Defense: Combat-Ready Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest
General Aviation: Vintage Fighter Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest
General Aviation: Vintage Aircraft — 2017 Photo Contest
General Aviation: Aerobatics — 2017 Photo Contest Submissions
Descriptions of photos are provided by the photographers. Although we make corrections when possible, we are unable to verify every detail provided with the photos or to research photo subjects.