The record What this system is, where it comes from, who operates it and which of Vigil’s modules it is relevant to — with the evidence each of those rests on.
Record
Conflict relevance
This is the catalogue's single record for this system. It is relevant to the modules below; each module's Force Atlas shows how it is used there.
Operators
Malian Armed Forces (FAMa): Four Mi-171Sh ordered in December 2020 and handed over in September 2021, with a further airframe shown at the August 2022 ceremony; losses since are reported but not independently established. No current count recorded. · Russia — Sahel security role: Reported in use by the Russian contingent for its own mobility; the division of airframes between Malian and Russian crews is not public. · Ukraine: The backbone of Ukrainian army aviation: assault transport, resupply and medevac. · Russia: Fielded across all Russian aviation branches in the same roles.
Battlefield role
In Ukraine, the backbone of battlefield aviation on both sides — assault transport, resupply and medevac flown under constant air-defence threat. In Mali, the Mi-171Sh deliveries are the state's air mobility, connecting garrisons that roads no longer safely reach.
Strengths
Lift, range and ruggedness in a design that every Soviet-trained air force knows how to fly and fix; the Mi-171Sh adds armour, rocket pods and door guns, which is why it serves as both transport and gunship in Mali.
Limitations
Large, slow and loud: in Ukraine it survives only by flying very low, and losses on both sides are documented; in Mali the fleet is small, dependent on Russian spares, and its serviceability is the binding limit on how many garrisons the state can reach by air.
Visual identification
A large single-rotor helicopter with a five-blade main rotor, a long boxy cabin with round windows and clamshell rear doors, the tail rotor on the left side; the Mi-171Sh carries stub wings with rocket pods.
Documented conflict use
UKRAINE–RUSSIA. Documented on both sides from 2022 in assault transport, resupply and medevac, and in the rocket-strike role from low level; losses on both sides are visually documented. SAHEL. Handed over in September 2021 and shown again in August 2022; reported in resupply of northern garrisons during the 2023 Kidal campaign and in the evacuation of posts. Crash and loss reports since 2023 exist but are not independently established.
Branch & service operators
- Malian Air Force (Armée de l’Air) Documented
Assessed as of — 2026-06 Last reviewed — 2026-09-28