At least 75 flights by aircraft associated with Russian state and private carriers were recorded between Russia and the countries of the central Sahel from January 2025 to July 2026. The routes were reconstructed using open ADS-B data analyzed by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS). The study covered flights to Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
The largest number of flights was to Burkina Faso — 56. In Mali, 38 flights were recorded, and in Niger — six. The total values exceed 75 because some routes passed through several countries. According to C4ADS, Burkina Faso was also used as an intermediate point between Mali and Niger.
Various types of aircraft were involved in the air network, including heavy An-124-100s, Il-76TDs, and passenger Il-96-300s. Some routes passed through Libya and Syria, while other aircraft traveled through major aviation hubs in the UAE, Algeria, and Turkey. Individual Il-96s could perform direct flights from Moscow to the capitals of Sahel countries due to their long flight range.
The study was based on FlightRadar24 data. However, the open tracking system does not show all air operations: some aircraft may disable ADS-B transmission or not appear in public databases. Therefore, 75 flights reflect only the recorded part of air traffic, but even from this, a stable network of routes between Russia and Central Africa can be seen.