Did Burkina Faso Purchase A Yak-130 Training Aircraft Recently?
An X user, @cecild84 claims that Burkina Faso under the aegis of the newly formed Alliance of Sahel States, AES, has acquired a Yak-130 jet that can circulate around Burkina or the coast in one hour. The post had an image of Yak-130 with the caption, “AES: the Yac-130 acquired on clean background without loan, can go around Burkina (or the Coast) in 1 hour. Burkina Faso is slowly but surely becoming a military superpower in West Africa, and no French or Western puppets can do anything about it.”
At the time of publishing this report, the claim had over 22,200 views and about 1,800 replies, reposts, quotes, likes and bookmarks. In the comment section, @knowmyname100 said “lol what will they do, try to take over Togo?”🤣 and @princelykris wrote “All the terrorist groups will quit terrorism and become good citizens of Burkina Faso.”
VERIFICATION
To ascertain the origin of the image used in the claim, the fact checker carried out a reverse search using Google lens. According to the results, a similar image appeared online 10 years ago in various reports, all related to Yakovlev Yak-130.
The Yakovlev Yak-130 is a subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer and light combat aircraft originally developed by Yakovlev and Aermacchi as the “Yak/AEM-130”. It has also been marketed as a potential light attack aircraft. Development of the aircraft began in 1991 and the maiden flight was conducted on 25 April 1996. In 2002, it won a Russian government tender for training aircraft and in 2010 the aircraft entered service with the Russian Air Force. As an advanced training aircraft, the Yak-130 is able to replicate the characteristics of several 4+ generation fighters as well as the fifth-generation Sukhoi Su-57. It can also perform light-attack and reconnaissance duties, carrying a combat load of 3,000 kg (6,600 Ib).
Yak-130, is a Russian-made subsonic jet trainer and light attack aircraft with a cruise speed of about 887 km/h and a maximum speed of around 1,060 km/h. Given that Burkina Faso’s total land boundary measures about 3,611 km and total area (land and water) which is 274,200 km2.
Land boundaries at 3,611 km
3,611 km ÷ 887 km/h = 4.07 hours = 4 hours and 4 minutes
3,611 ÷ 1,060 = 3.41 hours = 3 hours and 25 minutes
Total area (land and water) 274,200 km2 — √(274,200) = 523.64 km.
At 887 km/h: 523.64 ÷ 887 = 0.59 hours = 35 minutes and 25 seconds
At 1,060 km/h: 523.64 ÷ 1,060 = 0.49 hours = 29 minutes and 38 seconds
Additionally, the claim’s use of “Yac-130” instead of “Yak-130” reveals a key verification flaw. The misspelling is a common red flag in misinformation posts, indicating the source may not be credible or factually grounded. The official name “Yak-130” refers to the aircraft produced by Russia’s Yakovlev Design Bureau. This spelling error, combined with the unverified performance claims, further weakens the credibility of the post.
Also, there is no credible evidence that Burkina Faso has formally purchased and deployed Yak-130 jets, nor the Russian government delivering it to the Burkina Faso military base.
CONCLUSION
The claim that Burkina Faso acquired the Yak-130 aircraft that can go around the country in one hour is FALSE. There is no credible evidence or official confirmation that Burkina Faso has purchased or received Yak-130 jets. Although the jet can cover Burkina Faso’s land and water area in less than 35 minutes at minimum and maximum speed, no evidence shows the country made the purchase.
