658 Aircraft, 283 Helicopters, Here's What the Russian Military Lost in the 4-Year-Special Military Operation in Ukraine

Moscow, Russia - Four years into its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s military is taking a beating that no amount of propaganda can fully mask. Despite its claims of battlefield victories, the numbers tell a different story—one of relentless attrition, devastating equipment losses, and a war effort that seems to be sinking into a quagmire.

Moscow has now lost a jaw-dropping 658 aircraft and 283 helicopters—figures that would have been unthinkable when Vladimir Putin launched his so-called “special military operation” in 2022. Add to that over 22,000 tanks and armoured vehicles, nearly 50,000 drones, and thousands of artillery pieces, and it becomes clear: Russia is paying an enormous price for every inch of ground it seizes.

A War Moscow Thought Would Be Over in Days

When Russian forces stormed into Ukraine in February 2022, they expected a quick victory. Instead, they found themselves trapped in a war of attrition, facing a Ukrainian military that adapted quickly, dug in deep, and received a steady flow of high-tech Western weaponry.

Now, four years later, Russia’s military has been stretched thin across multiple frontlines—from Kharkiv and Donetsk to Kherson and Dnipro—where intense fighting continues. The Kremlin continues to claim tactical gains, but every advance comes at a cost.

Recent battles have seen Moscow push forward in Iskra, Zeleny Gai, Konstantinopol, and Fyodorovka, with Russian troops reportedly defeating Ukrainian mechanized and infantry brigades. Similar clashes have been reported near Kherson, Kharkiv, and Donetsk, with Moscow using everything from drones to artillery barrages in an attempt to break Ukrainian defences.

But for all these operations, the toll on Russia’s forces is undeniable.

658 Aircraft and Counting: A Sky-Loss Crisis for Russia

One of Russia’s biggest pain points is the sheer number of aircraft it has lost. The 658 fixed-wing aircraft and 283 helicopters taken down since 2022 represent one of the worst aviation attrition rates in modern warfare. No conflict in recent memory—not Afghanistan, not Syria, not even Russia’s bloody wars in Chechnya—has seen such catastrophic aviation losses.

Ukraine’s air defences, strengthened by U.S.-supplied Patriot systems, German IRIS-T, and NASAMS, have turned Russian air superiority into a costly illusion. Russian jets and helicopters that once roamed freely over Ukrainian skies are now being picked off at an alarming rate.

Even Russian drones, once a key advantage in reconnaissance and strikes, are being systematically destroyed. The numbers are staggering: 46,776 unmanned aerial vehicles lost, many of them Iranian-made Shaheds that are now being countered with Western electronic warfare systems.

Tanks, Artillery, and Vehicles: A Military Machine in Decline

The destruction doesn’t stop in the skies. On the ground, Russian forces have suffered:

• 22,285 tanks and armoured fighting vehicles destroyed or abandoned
• 22,581 artillery and mortar systems were wiped out
• 1,527 MLRS combat vehicles eliminated
• 32,902 special military vehicles lost

Western-supplied Leopard 2, Challenger 2, and M1 Abrams tanks have allowed Ukrainian forces to launch counterattacks that have left Russian armour burning across the frontlines. HIMARS and long-range missile strikes have also decimated Russian supply lines, further weakening its ability to sustain offensive operations.

More Soldiers, More Equipment—But For How Long?

To keep its war effort going, Russia has thrown wave after wave of soldiers into the fight, including prisoners-turned-mercenaries and mobilized conscripts. The Kremlin continues to tout battlefield gains, but these advances are coming at an unsustainable cost.

In just the latest round of fighting, Moscow claims to have inflicted over 1,200 Ukrainian troop casualties while striking 162 military sites, including airfields and logistics hubs. But the battlefield statistics also show that Russia itself is taking a severe hit, with manpower and hardware losses piling up.

Ukraine, backed by billions of dollars in Western military aid, is fighting smart—leveraging advanced intelligence, electronic warfare, and precision strikes to weaken Russian forces.

Four Years In, Russia Faces a Grim Reality

So, where does Russia go from here? With its air force and armoured brigades suffering massive losses, its economy under crippling Western sanctions, and its military stretched across a sprawling battlefield, Moscow is caught in a slow-motion crisis of its own making.

Putin insists that victory is inevitable. But with 658 aircraft down, 283 helicopters gone, and tens of thousands of tanks and artillery pieces wiped out, one thing is clear—Russia’s war machine is bleeding out, and time is not on its side.