Summary Russian paramilitary Wagner group operates in Mali, suffers aircraft losses in battles. Losses include Su-25 Frogfoots, L-39 Albatros jet trainers, Il-76 transport, and helicopters. Russia aims to reconstitute Mali Air Force for counter-insurgency, putting strain on Russian combat aircraft stocks.
While the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to rage, that is not the only war Russia is fighting. Russia is fighting a number of somewhat covert or limited wars in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Sahara. One of the most notable is in the African Sahara nation of Mali , where Russia is fighting through its paramilitary group Wagner.
The war in Mali requires a very different type of air force. In Mali, light ground attack aircraft are better suited and not large fighter bombers like the Su-34s Russia uses in Ukraine . Russia's unofficial army Officially, Wagner or PMC Wagner is a private military group open for hire and contracts with Mali to provide security services in the nation (as well as other countries worldwide ).
However, it is widely seen as another Russian paramilitary group controlled by the Kremlin. As Wagner is (or was) not Russia's official military, it provides Russia with plausible deniability (like when US forces annihilated a group of them in Syria in 2018 at the Battle of Khasham ). Wagner was heavily used to fighting Ukraine at the Battle of Bakhmut in 2023.
However, the strain of war and internal divisions led them to briefly rebel and thunder run towards Moscow in mutiny (during the mutiny, they shot down up to 8 or 9 Russian Air Force aircraft ). An agreement was soon reached with them, but their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed in an apparent aircraft bombing/shootdown two months later . Wagner PMC Dates of operation: 2014 to present Part of: National Guard of Russia Countries active: Ukraine, Mali, CAR, Sudan, Libya, Syria Designated: Terrorist organizations by UK, France, and some other European states Noted for: Battle of Bakhmut, 2023 Mutiny The BBC reports that the Russian president stated at the time that the state fully funded members of Wagner.
Putin stated that the Russian government gave them 86.262 billion roubles ($1 billion) between May 2022 and May 2023 from the country's defense ministry and state budget. Following the mutiny, it was reported that Wagner was incorporated as part of the National Guard of Russia.
The unavailability of jet fuel has caused significant flight disruptions at Bamako Airport. Wagner aircraft losses in Mali If Wagner is seen as an extension of the Russian armed forces, Wagner aircraft losses in Mali can then be considered Russian aircraft losses of sorts. It also appears that Ukraine has decided to take the fight to Russia in Mali, turning the deserts into a bizarre Ukraine/Russian proxy war (although Ukraine denies the allegation).
A major battle erupted in July 2024 in the Sahara between Wagner and Mali troops on one side and various insurgent groups (including Tuareg tribesmen) supported by Ukrainian operatives. During the battle, scores of Russian Wagner troops were wiped out. One helicopter was confirmed destroyed, while a second may have been destroyed (but this is unconfirmed).
Mali also stated it lost a helicopter, but it is unclear if this is the same one. Sometimes, it is unclear whether the aircraft are in the service of Wagner or the Mali Air Force. Even if they are in the service of the Mali Air Force, they may still have Russian pilots and maintainers.
Wagner's aircraft losses are bundled with Mali's below. Mali Air Force aircraft losses The Russians have sought to reconstitute the Mali Air Force so that it can carry out counter-insurgency operations in the Sahara. Many of these aircraft have to be sent from Russia, which means there are fewer combat aircraft available in Russia.
For example, the Su-25 Frogfoot is out of production, so Russia only has a finite stock of them. Note that this is an in-exhaustive list, and it is likely that more Russian aircraft have been lost in Mali than listed. The full extent of Russian-affiliated aircraft losses in Mali are opaque.
Aircraft lost in Mali (Mali Air Force + Wagner): known quantity: note Su-25 Frogfoots: 2 known (2022 and 2023) both lost with two months of arriving L-39 Albatros jet trainers: 3+ two lost before September 2023, one shot down after take-off on May 9, 2024 Ilyushin Il-76 transport: 1+ (only such transport) crashed killing large numbers of Wagner troops on September 23, 2023 Mi-24D 'Hind' attack helicopter: 1 crashed April 2023, purchased from Bulgaria Mi-8 helicopter: 1 during Wagner ambush on July 2024 (possible shoot down) Mi-24P 'Hind' attack helicopter: 1 during Wagner ambush on July 2024 In March 2023, Times Aerospace reported Mali ". ..
has received at least four Aero L-39 jet trainers, which can be used in the ground attack role, as well as a single Mi-8T Hip transport helicopter and two Mi-8MTs, two Mi-24 Hind attack helicopters, two Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot ground attack jets, and a single Airbus C-295 tactical transport...
Most of the new aircraft appear to have come from Russian stocks.. .
" It seems most of these aircraft have now been lost over Mali. Mali received two Su-25s from Russia in 2022 and 2023, but both were lost within months of being delivered..
