The Mi-24 HIND was the first assault transport and gunship helicopter to enter service with the Russian Air Force. It was developed on the basis of the Mi-8's propulsion system. Its missions include direct air support, antitank, armed escort, and air to air combat. The HIND was used in large numbers in the Afghanistan War, becoming the most prominent weapon of the conflict. The Mi-24 can be compared with the AH-64 Apache, but the HIND is also capable of transporting up to eight fully equipped soldiers. The Russians have deployed large numbers of HINDs in Europe and have exported the HIND to many third world countries. Nowadays, nearly all of the older HIND A, B and C variants have been upgraded or modified to the HIND D or E standard, which was introduced in 1976.

It has a five-blade main rotor which is mounted on top of the fuselage midsection. Short weapon-carrying wings are mounted on both sides of the fuselage. Two turboshaft engines are mounted above the fuselage midsection. The fuselage consists of a large, oval-shaped body. The Hind D has a nose modification with the now traditional attack cockpit in a tandem configuration, and a chin-mounted gun-turret. Other weapons are mounted on underwing external stores points. Each wing has three hardpoints which makes a total of six stations. A typical mix when targeting armor formations - besides the turret-mounted 4-barrel 12.7-mm Gatling type machinegun - would be AT-6 ATGMs and 57-mm rockets. The aircraft can load additional ammunition in the cargo compartment when not carrying troops. The armored cockpits and the titanium rotor head can withstand 20-mm cannon hits. Every aircraft has an overpressurization system for operation in contaminated environment. Because of the aircraft’s size and weight, it is not easily maneuverable. Therefore they usually attack in pairs or multiple pairs, and from various directions.