Aircraft linked to U.S. veteran served RSF supply routes

A Reuters investigation has identified links between companies controlled by Steven Shaulis, a former member of the U.S. Army Special Forces, commonly known as the Green Berets, and a network of aircraft and logistics firms involved in supply routes serving areas controlled by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces during the war that erupted in April 2023.

The investigation was based on corporate and aviation records, satellite imagery, flight-tracking data, mobile-phone location data, and interviews with more than 40 officials, diplomats, and experts in aviation and weapons. Reuters found that companies owned or managed by Shaulis had helped operate logistics hubs used by the RSF in Darfur and elsewhere along its regional supply network.

Shaulis, 63, heads the Central Asia Development Group, or CADG, and a group of companies operating in the aviation and logistics sectors, according to Reuters. Since 2002, the companies have received contracts worth more than $419 million from the U.S. government and the United Nations. Their work included constructing infrastructure for U.S. forces in Afghanistan and carrying out projects for the U.S. Department of Defense in Iraq and Kenya.

The investigation found, however, that companies linked to Shaulis had also operated three Boeing cargo aircraft—727s and 737s—that repeatedly flew between airports in Chad, Libya and Somalia and RSF-controlled areas of Sudan’s Darfur region.

Reuters said the aircraft travelled to locations it described as key logistics hubs used by the RSF. These included Nyala airport in South Darfur, Kufra in southeastern Libya, Bosaso in Somalia and N’Djamena in Chad. Flight-tracking data and satellite imagery analysed by the news agency indicated that these locations served as important nodes in a network used to move equipment and personnel at different stages of the war.

One of the aircraft, a Boeing 737 operated by Occidental Support Services, a company owned by Shaulis and registered in the United Arab Emirates, was destroyed in a Sudanese military strike at Nyala airport in 2025, the investigation found. The strike killed 54 people, including RSF fighters and members of the aircraft’s crew. Those killed included a pilot and a maintenance engineer employed by the company.

Documents reviewed by Reuters showed that the three aircraft were operated through a network of companies registered in several countries. Their operations appeared to take advantage of regulatory gaps governing aircraft registration, ownership and oversight across different jurisdictions.

Reuters said it found no evidence that Shaulis or his companies had violated U.S. sanctions or directly participated in war crimes. It also found no evidence that Shaulis knew the aircraft were being used to support RSF military operations.

The investigation comes amid growing international scrutiny of the cross-border supply networks that have helped sustain Sudan’s war. A United Nations panel of experts previously reported that the RSF had established new supply routes through Darfur and neighbouring countries after the conflict began in 2023. According to the panel, the routes enabled the group to obtain weapons, vehicles and other logistical supplies, strengthening its military capabilities during fighting in western Sudan.