Russia’s drive in one battlefront has cost it a staggering 1,800 combat vehicles

Russia’s offensive in the Pokrovsk region has come at a cost of over 1,800 combat vehicles. 

Russian forces have reportedly lost nearly 2,000 armored vehicles, tanks, and heavy equipment since launching its offensive in eastern Ukraine last October, an open-source researcher found.

In February, Russia seized the town of Avdiivka, a longtime Ukrainian stronghold, after a monthslong campaign that contributed to “some of the highest Russian casualty rates of the war so far,” according to British military intelligence.

Moscow’s losses — both in equipment and personnel — only continued to grow as it advanced in the western Donetsk region, an onslaught against Ukraine’s defended positions that contributed to the heavy toll in September; a US official recently said that month saw the highest Russian casualties in the entire war.

In early October, two key Ukrainian front-line towns, Vuhledar and Hrodivka, fell to Russia during its advance toward Pokrovsk, a strategic city serving as a road and rail hub to supply Ukrainian military outposts.

Despite the heavy equipment losses, Russian forces have yet to make concrete tactical gains in the region, advancing only about 25 miles toward the key Ukrainian city.

A new report by the Institute for the Study of War said the reported losses amounted to at least five divisions’ worth of combat vehicles, citing an open-source X account tracking visually confirmed Russian vehicle and equipment losses.

Russian forces have also lost rockets, antiaircraft systems, and drones in its offensive along the eastern front. This is a breakdown of the heavy losses that could jeopardize Russia’s ability to expand its battlefield gains.

Combat vehicles

An abandoned Russian BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle close to the Azovstal plant in Mariupol.

As of early October, Russia had lost just over 1,000 armored fighting vehicles and infantry mobility vehicles, roughly equating to four to five mechanized infantry divisions’ worth of military vehicles, the open-source X user found.

A majority of the combat vehicle losses stemmed from the Russian offensive toward Pokrovsk after Ukrainian forces destroyed 835 of the 1,020 armored vehicles. Destroyed vehicles exact a human toll. A BMP-1 amphibious fighting vehicle, for example, is crewed by three soldiers and can carry up to eight passengers.

A Ukrainian military commander reported that Russia was losing up to 90% of the vehicles used in mechanized assaults in the Donetsk region this past summer, the ISW wrote.

But Russian equipment losses could be even higher, given that the open-source data relies on verifying images shared publicly of destroyed or abandoned vehicles. In February, the British International Institute for Strategic Studies, a global defense think tank, estimated that Russian forces were losing more than 3,000 armored fighting vehicles annually.

Tanks

An abandoned Russian T-62 tank was retaken by the Ukrainian army from Russian troops.

At least 539 Russian tanks have also been lost in this drive — about 70% of which were destroyed by Ukrainian forces during Russia’s assault into eastern Ukraine.

The X user found that in the past month alone, Russian forces had lost 25 tanks and 59 armored vehicles, which the ISW said was equivalent to two battalions’ worth of mechanized equipment.

Russia’s loss has been Ukraine’s gain, as troops repair and redeploy the damaged or captured tanks to counter Russian forces.

Multiple Launch Rocket Systems

A destroyed Russian Multiple Launch Rocket System vehicle abandoned in Kyiv Oblast. 

At least 22 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems were also among Russia’s heavy equipment losses, the open-source data shows.

MLRS have been critical assets in Russia’s arsenal, allowing it to carry and launch rocket artillery barrages against Ukrainian defenses. Russia’s artillery advantage and its relentless glide-bomb attacks have forced Ukrainian soldiers to fall back.

Earlier this week, Russia said it used an MLRS to hit a Ukrainian stronghold near the frontline town of Chasiv Yar, about 6 miles west of Bakhmut. The Russian Ministry of Defense said the attack, which used 220 mm munitions, aimed to destroy ammunition and equipment storage sites, as well as isolate Ukrainian reserve forces.

Artillery

A Russian soldier aiming a 120 mm towed gun.

Russian heavy equipment losses also included 11 towed and 51 self-propelled artillery systems.

Russia has a significant artillery advantage over Ukraine, producing and acquiring more shells than Ukraine and its allies can. A top US general warned in April that Russia’s advantage was only projected to double as supply shortages continued to plague Ukraine’s stockpiles.

Drones and aircraft

The Merlin-VR Russian Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, a Russian reconnaissance drone, can operate at an altitude of up to 5 kilometers. 

Russia suffered airborne losses as well, including at least 13 reconnaissance drones that scout Ukraine’s lines for troop positions and targets to strike.

In July, a Russian Su-25 attack jet and a Mi-8 transport helicopter were downed near Pokrovsk by Ukrainian forces using antiaircraft guns.