Russia's Africa Corps lost two aircraft over northern Mali in less than 48 hours in early July, as Tuareg-led rebels of the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) launched a coordinated offensive against military positions across the country.
On July 4, a Su-24 Fencer strike aircraft operated by the Russian paramilitary force was hit by ground fire while flying bombing runs against rebel positions near Anefif, in Mali's northeast. According to Intellinews, the damaged aircraft attempted to reach Gao Korogoussou air base, some 200 km to the south, but crashed during the recovery attempt, killing both pilots.
The following day, FLA fighters claimed to have shot down an Mi-24P attack helicopter that was covering a convoy retreating from Gao toward Anefis. The Mi-24 was reportedly ambushed near Tlemsi, with a truck-mounted 23 mm anti-aircraft gun described in early reports as the likely cause. The rebels said the entire crew was killed. Footage of the crash circulated widely, but neither Russian nor Malian authorities have confirmed the loss. According to Meduza, the crash was reported by a pro-military Russian Telegram channel, while the defense ministry in Moscow has remained silent.
The shootdowns came amid the heaviest fighting in northern Mali this year. The offensive, launched on July 4 by the FLA in coordination with the al-Qaeda-linked JNIM group, struck Anefis, Aguelhok and Gao in the north and Sevare in central Mali, according to Al Jazeera.
The Africa Corps, the Russian defense ministry's successor to the Wagner Group in the Sahel, has backed Mali's military government against Tuareg separatists and jihadist groups since taking over Wagner's operations there. The July losses bring to three the number of its aircraft downed by rebel fire since April: an Mi-8AMTSh transport helicopter was shot down by a man-portable air defense missile near Wabaria, in the Gao region, on April 25. While Russia fields more than 300 Mi-24/35s and nearly 300 Su-24s across its air force and naval aviation, the Africa Corps detachment in Mali operates only a handful of airframes, and replacements must transit an increasingly contested logistics chain to reach the Sahel.
The FLA has vowed to press its offensive, and with no official acknowledgment from Moscow or Bamako, independent verification of further losses in the region is likely to remain limited.
More News
All news →
RAF Typhoons Escort French Rafales in First Joint Nuclear Strike Exercise
Royal Air Force Typhoons flew alongside French Rafales simulating a nuclear strike over the Mediterranean on 20-21 October, the first British participation in a French nuclear air exercise, the UK Ministry of Defence said on 23 October.
UK to Fly RAF Typhoon Defensive Missions Over Saudi Arabia Against Houthi Missiles and Drones
The UK Ministry of Defence said on October 20, 2026 that RAF Typhoon fighters will fly defensive counter-air missions to help protect Saudi cities and infrastructure from Houthi missiles and drones, alongside an A400M transport and military advisers, with no strikes against the Houthis.
US Army Activates Air Defense Battalion on Guam as Its Part of the Guam Defense System
The 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment was activated at Andersen Air Force Base on October 16, 2026, building on more than a decade of Task Force Talon operations on Guam and, per an Army spokesperson quoted by The War Zone, set to field Patriot and Enduring Shield.
North Korea Says It Fired Two Submarine-Launched Cruise Missiles, Shows Hero Kim Kun Ok Submarine at Sea
North Korea's state media said two types of submarine-launched cruise missiles were test-fired off its east coast on October 14, 2026, and released a first photo of the Hero Kim Kun Ok submarine at sea; Seoul said it tracked the launches.
Why Hypersonic Glide Vehicles, Scramjet Cruise Missiles and the Kinzhal Are Three Different Weapons
Two flight tests in one week, the US Air Force's scramjet-powered HACM over Australia and South Korea's first hypersonic glide vehicle on October 8, shared one word for different machines; what sets them, and Russia's Kinzhal, apart is altitude, propulsion and maneuver, not speed.
Su-34 Fullback Is the Combat Jet Russia Has Lost Most Often Since 2022, With 37 Airframes in GMN's Log
GlobalMilitary.net's log of documented losses records 37 Russian Su-34 airframes lost since February 2022, more than any other fixed-wing combat aircraft, as the destruction of a Fullback at Khanskaya Air Base on October 4 and a new delivery batch on October 7 bracket the latest week.