It should be noted that the Ukrainian military and fighters of the National Guard are also not without losses. For several months of the "anti-terrorist operation" the army and the National Guard under lost a certain number of soldiers and officers (killed and wounded), and also remained without a solid number of various equipment, both land and aviation.
A characteristic feature of the current war has become a specific situation in the information space. Compiling an objective picture of various aspects of war, primarily about the losses of the parties, is usually complicated by some features of the dissemination of information. This time, those who want to get objective information have to deal with various dishonest methods of waging this information war. Often the discrepancy of information from different sources is not due to the specifics of the dissemination of information, but a banal lie.
11 August Ukrainian media, citing the speaker of the Security Council of Ukraine Andrei Lysenko spread new information about the losses. It was alleged that 568 security officers died during the fighting, 2120 was injured. A few days later, Vladimir Rogov, co-chairman of the Novorossiya Popular Front, announced his information. According to him, as of August 15, the armed forces and the National Guard of Ukraine lost 14378 people killed and wounded, 158 were captured and about 9 thousands of soldiers deserted (went over to the militia or fled from the war). Every day dozens of soldiers and officers are killed or injured. The peak of casualties fell on 13 and 14 in August, when, according to the militia, the army lost about a thousand people and about a hundred pieces of equipment to those killed and wounded.
As you can see, the information on both sides is different at times. The only conclusion that can be drawn from this is someone who publishes incorrect information. In addition, both sources may be wrong for objective reasons, but one of them should still be closer to the truth. Nevertheless, the exact information for obvious reasons remains unknown, and it remains to rely on information from various sources interested in overestimating the losses of the enemy and minimizing their own.
A number of factors suggest that the real losses of the Ukrainian armed forces and the National Guard are higher than official data. An indirect confirmation of this can be considered the transfer of more and more new formations to the combat zone, the next mobilization and the recent successes of Lugansk and Donetsk militias. All this suggests that the existing forces, already abandoned by the new government in the battle, cannot cope with the enemy, including because of losses. Also, it should be noted the specific structure of the forces involved in the so-called. ATO. In addition to the military, units of the National Guard and the Interior Ministry and several volunteer units participate in the battles. Such a structure of forces, at a minimum, complicates the collection and processing of information about losses, and in the conditions of the existing concealment of information makes them almost impossible.
Thus, one should not be surprised at the relatively small numbers, called the Ukrainian command. There is every reason to believe that they cannot reflect the real situation both for objective reasons and for political reasons. Naturally, these assumptions do not accurately determine the Ukrainian losses, but they can be used to draw clear conclusions about the veracity of official information.
Ground forces and the National Guard are losing not only people, but also equipment. Everyone remembers the case when, at the very beginning of the conflict, the Ukrainian military handed over several combat vehicles to the militia, including the Nona self-propelled gun 2C9. In the future, several tens of armored vehicles of various types, apart from cars and other vehicles, became trophies of the militia.
Fortunately, information about the loss of armored vehicles receives various confirmations and can be collected together. Consider the loss of armored vehicles based on the information available in the LostArmour.info database. This service collects confirmed data on the fate of the armored vehicles involved in battles from both sides. According to the database, during the conflict 180 armored vehicles became trophies, 148 were destroyed. It should be noted that the “military path” of some tanks and armored personnel carriers marked with entries in the list of trophies and losses, and sometimes several times (several cars literally passed from hand to hand).
During the fighting, the militia of Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics were able to capture the X-NUMX of the T-43 tank of various modifications (A / B / BV), three of which later returned to their previous owners. Three dozen BMP-64 and BMP-1, captured by the militia, no longer changed owners. Also at the disposal of the militia were 2 BTR-24, 80 BTR-8 and 70 BRDM-14. Of these, again the trophies, this time of the military and the National Guard, were 2, 3 and 2 machine, respectively. In total, out of 1 lost machines that the enemy has fallen into, the Ukrainian units regained 180.
Of the 148 armored vehicles of various types destroyed, only 14 belonged to the Lugansk and Donetsk militia. All other tanks, armored personnel carriers and other vehicles belonged to the armed forces and the National Guard of Ukraine. According to LostArmour.info, during the battles 35 T-64 tanks were destroyed, three of which belonged to the militia, the rest to the military. The greatest losses were sustained by infantry fighting vehicles: a total of 61 BMP-1 and BMP-2 were destroyed. In addition, it should be noted the destruction of 11 self-propelled artillery installations of several types.
Ground battles lead to significant losses of land vehicles. However, the air force of Ukraine did not manage to make losses either. According to the Aviation Safety Network database, since April, the Ukrainian Air Force has lost several types of 25 aircraft and helicopters. A few more dozens of cars received various damages and are being repaired or have already been repaired and returned to service.
The Ukrainian Su-25 ground attack aircraft suffered the greatest losses. In total, eight such vehicles were shot down, another made an emergency landing and went to the militia. In battles, the 5 combat helicopters Mi-24 and 4 multipurpose Mi-8 were lost. Over the past two weeks, the list of casualties has been replenished with two MiG-29 fighters, successfully shot down by militias.
In the context of losses of the Ukrainian Air Force, the distribution of losses is of interest. June was the most unsuccessful for Ukrainian aviation, during which it lost 10 aircraft. For comparison, in June 3 aircraft and 3 helicopters were destroyed, and the May losses were limited to 4 helicopters. For two decades of August, the militia shot down only two planes and a helicopter, and also captured the Tu-143 drone. Such facts may indicate that the amount of usable aircraft is constantly decreasing, and the air defense potential of the militia is growing. All this leads to clear and expected results.
The war continues, the warring parties continue to suffer losses. Apparently, the account of the dead Ukrainian fighters has already gone to thousands, which, given the absence of any serious success, gives the situation a very unattractive look. The concealment of losses and frankly disregard for the belligerent units can have very different consequences and their nature is unlikely to be positive for the Kiev authorities. Anything can be the result of current events on the battlefield and beyond, up to the riot of the troops and mass desertion or even another “revolution”.
Nevertheless, the official Ukrainian sources continue to talk about minimal losses, and the soldiers of the army and the National Guard still lose their equipment and comrades. It is safe to say that regardless of official and unofficial data or estimates, losses will increase every day until the war ends.
On the materials of the sites:
http://ria.ru/
http://svpressa.ru/
http://7days-ua.com/
http://lostarmour.info/
http://aviation-safety.net/