Through open source research, Mediazona, a Russian independent media outlet, together with BBC Russia, confirmed the names of 31,665 Russian soldiers who had been killed in the past 18 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 in August, over 900 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.
The largest number of death notifications is sent to the Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk and Rostov regions, as well as Bashkiria and Buryatia.
Since the last update, the journalists also learned about the deaths of six Russian officers of Lieutenant Colonel rank and higher, bringing the total tally of high-ranking officers to 295.
Mediazona also adds that at least 181 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."
Asami Terajima
