The Mi-24, the first helicopter to enter service with the Russian Air Force as an assault transport and gunship, was developed on the basis of the Mi-8's propulsion system.

Additional missions include direct air support, anti-tank, armed escort, and air to air combat. The helicopter was used extensively in the Afghanistan War, becoming the "signature" weapon of the conflict.

The Mi-24 is a close counterpart to the American AH-64 Apache, but unlike this and other Western assault helicopters it is also capable of transporting up to eight troops. The Russians have deployed significant numbers of HINDs in Europe and have exported the HIND to many third world countries.

The five-blade main rotor is mounted on top of the fuselage midsection, while short, stubby, weapon-carrying wings are mounted at the fuselage midsection. Two turboshaft engines are mounted above the body midsection with two round air intakes located just above the cockpit and exhaust ports on the sides of engines. The Hind A fuselage consists of a large, oval-shaped body with a glassed-in cockpit, tapering at the rear to the tail boom. The Hind D fuselage features nose modification with tandem bubble canopies, and a chin-mounted turret. The swept-back tapered tail fin features a rotor on the right on some models, with tapered flats on a boom just forward of the fin.

External stores are mounted on underwing external stores points. Each wing has three hardpoints for a total of six stations. A representative mix when targeting armour formations would be eight AT-6 ATGMs, 750x 30mm rounds, and two 57mm rocket pods. The aircraft can store an additional ammunition basic load in the cargo compartment in lieu of carrying troops. Armoured cockpits and titanium rotor head able to withstand 20mm cannon hits. Every aircraft has an over pressurisation system for operation in a NBC environment.

The HIND’s wings provide 22% to 28% of its lift in forward flight. In a steep banking turn at slower airspeeds, the low wing can lose lift while it is maintained on the upper wing, resulting in an excessive roll. This is countered by increasing forward airspeed to increase lift on the lower wing. Because of this characteristic, and the aircraft’s size and weight, it is not easily manoeuvrable. Therefore they usually attack in pairs or multiple pairs, and from various directions.