Based on open data, the Russian service of BBC* and «Meduza»* identified the names of 88,055 Russian soldiers who died during the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Considering that open data accounts for only 45-65% of the total number of deaths, and the LPR/DPR units may have lost up to 23,500 fighters killed, the real losses amount to over 180,000 people.
Of the identified dead, as calculated by the BBC, at least 6,083 are regular soldiers who served in elite units: Airborne Forces, naval infantry, special forces units of the Ministry of Defense and National Guard, as well as military pilots.
By the beginning of 2025, journalists confirmed the death of 3,240 regular paratroopers — those who began serving in the Airborne Forces even before the war with Ukraine, having undergone extensive training, or graduates of military academies. Among the dead are 654 officers.
The total established losses of Airborne Forces units amounted to 3,957 soldiers. In addition to regular paratroopers, 253 people sent to Airborne Forces units during mobilization and 419 volunteers also died.
The 331st Guards Airborne Regiment from Kostroma suffered the greatest losses. Based only on open sources, 237 dead have been identified, including the regiment commander and 40 other officers. 59 soldiers died in the first month of the war alone — during the attempt to storm Hostomel and the village of Moschun near Kyiv.
The 31st Guards Airborne Brigade from Ulyanovsk also suffered significant losses — at least 214 people killed, of which 68 died in the first two weeks of the invasion, also during the storming of Hostomel. The total number of soldiers from the 31st Brigade who were out of action due to death or severe injury may approach the pre-war strength of the brigade.
The most elite unit of the Airborne Forces — the 45th Special Forces Brigade, based in the Moscow region's Kubinka, lost 54 people, including four officers. This is more than in all the previous 30 years of the unit's existence.
By 2025, the BBC managed to establish the death of 580 GRU special forces soldiers, almost every fifth of them — an officer (108 people).
The death of 1,247 regular naval infantrymen has also been confirmed, among them 214 officers.
Among Russia's military losses, the death of military pilots stands out. Crews of combat aircraft and helicopters are unique specialists and the elite of any army in the world. Training one fighter pilot can take 15-17 years and cost 12-14 million dollars. In the war in Ukraine, according to open data, 267 military pilots died, with an average age of 40 years.
* Recognized in Russia as «foreign agents».