The Ka-50 "Black Shark" is a single-seat attack helicopter which was designed to destroy armored vehicles, slow-speed air targets and infantry on the battlefield. The coaxial, contrarotating, three-blade main rotors are widely separated and make a tail rotor obsolete. The short weapon-carrying wings with end plates are mounted on the fuselage, which is flat-bottomed except for the underbelly gun pod. The tail has a tapering tail boom and a back-tapered fin with a square tip. Twin turboshaft engines are mounted high on the fuselage above the short wings. The semicircular engine exhausts are turned outward.

The helicopter is single seated to increase combat and flight characteristics and reduce operational costs. The airframe is very sturdy and is made of 35% composite materials with a structural central keel beam of kevlar that protects all critical systems and ammunition. The pilot's cabin is fully armored and can withstand 23-mm gunfire, and the cockpit glass gives protection against 12.7-mm MG gunfire. The Zvezda K-37-800 pilot ejection system guarantees a successful ejection even at low altitude and maximum speed. External stores are mounted on underwing external hardpoints. Each wing has two hardpoints for a total of four stations. Numerous weapons options with different combinations of anti-tank missiles, rockets, air-to-air missiles, gun ammunition of a container type and bombs of various calibers are possible. The 30-mm cannon is the same as on the BMP-2. It also can carry guided IGLA-B air-to-air missiles. Maximum weight of all weapons on the wing stores can be 2,300 kg. Regarding the weapons power, the "Black Shark" helicopter is superior to all other existing combat helicopters. The Shark's avionics is the same as for one-seater fighters and ground attack jets. One of the most remarkable features is a remote targeting system so that the Shark can attack from a distance without direct visual contact with the target. The firing computer is able to turn the aircraft automatically to keep the gun on target. The Shark is equipped with a downlink to get information directly from the battlefield. The targeting and control system make it possible to engage targets at ranges of up to 10km. The HOKUM is fully aerobatic and can perform loops, rolls, and “the funnel”. The Shark can maintain a concentrated point of fire while flying circles of varying altitude, elevation, and airspeed around a target. Most probable armament consists of the fuselage-mounted 30-mm cannon, 80-mm rockets and AT-16 VIKhR ATGMs. The Shark's avionics package ensures a full day/night, all weather capability. For night operations it must be fitted with a night targeting pod on one of the underwing pylons. This pod includes a FLIR, a millimeter wave radar, and an electro-optical sight.