Fighters from the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) seized the abandoned remains of a Malian Air Force Mil Mi-24P attack helicopter during operations in northern Mali, with open-source intelligence (OSINT) analyst Zaryon identifying the aircraft and publishing the details in late April, 2026. The helicopter bears registration number TZ-07H and has been used to provide fire support to Malian Army ground forces during clashes with insurgents.
The captured helicopter was part of a batch of military equipment delivered to Mali on March 30, 2022, as part of defense cooperation with Russia. Russia supplied two Mi-24P helicopters along with P-18 and 59N6-TE “Protivnik-GE” radar systems at that time. When that equipment arrived, Mali’s combat aviation fleet totaled 11 aircraft, all of Soviet/Russian origin, organized into a single aviation squadron comprising 7 older Mi-24D platforms and 4 more modern Mi-35M helicopters.
THE AIRCRAFT
The Mil Mi-24P is the “Hind-F” variant of the Mi-24 family, a twin-engine gunship designed by Soviet engineers to combine attack power with a secondary troop-carrying role. The Mi-24P replaced the flexible nose-mounted machine gun found on earlier variants with a fixed fuselage-mounted 30mm GSh-30K autocannon, exchanging aiming flexibility for increased firepower. The type crew consists of 2 members and can transport up to 8 soldiers in its rear cabin or carry an external sling load of up to 2,500 kg. Its 2 Klimov TV3-117 turboshaft engines deliver a maximum speed of 330 km/h and an operational range of approximately 500 km on internal fuel. Soviet pilots nicknamed it the “flying tank’ due to its armor protection against ground fire, a critical asset for low-intensity counter-insurgency operations, which Mali has been employing.
The loss of TZ-07H reduces Mali’s already limited combat helicopter force. Before the current hostilities, the fleet comprised 11 aircraft; the destruction or abandonment of even one Mi-24P, coupled with the loss of another helicopter and crew to rebel attack in 2024, reduces Bamako’s capacity to provide aerial fire support for ground units operating across the country’s extensive northern regions. The capture of the helicopter signifies a broader crisis. Since April 2026, the FLA and the Islamist group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) have conducted coordinated attacks across multiple locations, the most significant offensive in the Mali conflict since 2012. The FLA claimed control of Kidal and parts of Gao. Mali’s Defence Minister, Sadio Camara, was killed in an attack upon his residence in Kati, a garrison city, on April 25, 2026.
At Kidal, the extent of equipment losses exceeds that of the helicopter alone. Rebel-affiliated footage released on April 27, 2026, depicts a ground control station for operating Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 (UAV) at the Kidal military base; this facility is containerized and mounted on a truck, equipped with three screens, electronic racks, and control joysticks. Mali received the TB2 drones in December 2022. No images have emerged indicating rebel possession of the TB2 drones themselves, and local sources reported that the ground control station was subsequently targeted in an airstrike. The station’s current operational status remains unconfirmed. Russian units reportedly withdrew from Kidal via a “green corridor” provided by the rebels in exchange for a non-hostile withdrawal. The loss of Kidal complicates resupply efforts for Malian garrisons situated further north.
The capture of the Mil Mi-24P provides limited intelligence value regarding the aircraft itself; rather, it highlights shortcomings in force protection and underscores the limitations of Russian-supported counter-insurgency tactics in terrain beyond the government’s control. As the FLA now controls Kidal and advances further south, the pressing challenge for Bamako will be to stabilize its aviation and drone capabilities and prevent these assets from falling into rebel hands, factors that will critically shape the next phase of this conflict.