Through open source research, Mediazona, a Russian independent media outlet, together with BBC Russia, confirmed the names of 30,003 Russian soldiers who had been killed in the past 17 months of the full-scale war. The media organizations carry out a name-by-name count of the dead.
Since the media's latest update on July 28, a total of 1,351 names have been added to the list of casualties. The journalists specify that the actual figures are likely considerably higher since the information they have verified so far comes from public sources, including obituaries, posts by relatives, news in regional media and reports by local authorities.
Mediazona highlights in their latest report a slightly higher than usual growth in causalties among Russian artillery and rocket launcher troops. OSINT-researchers who are monitoring Ukraine’s counteroffensive in Zaporizhzhia Oblast have also noted these troops suffer huge losses.
Since the last July update, the journalists also learned about the deaths of four Russian officers of Lieutenant Colonel rank and higher, bringing the total tally of high-ranking officers to 284.
Mediazona also adds that at least 176 military pilots are known to have been killed. "The loss of pilots is particularly painful for the army," reads the report. "...It takes 7–8 years to train one first-class pilot, and costs about $3.4 million. The loss of each pilot also means the loss of expensive equipment."
Olena Goncharova
