Mi-171 Repair & Paint Journey

After a very soft landing and forward roll, the right main gear of my massive HeliClassics Mi-171 separated from the strut support and caused the helicopter to list violently. In the process, the blades did a good bit of damage to the boom, which is made from Airex, a honeycomb material that is more rigid than fiberglass.

I sent the tail back to Germany, where Matthias Strupf of HeliClassics began his magic.

Matthias created a patch and new former to ensure the integrity of the tail boom. Once the patch was installed, he began the process of filling and feathering.

Matthias removed all evidence of damage in this sequence.

Matthias paints the tail and incredibly blends the new paint with the existing color on the undamaged areas. The lettering is sprayed along with the cammo patterns. The result is incredible.