Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
It’s equivelant to roughly a thousand Russians dead per one Ukrainian
A senior Ukrainian drone commander has published dramatic casualty figures this week, saying his unit has inflicted heavy losses on Russian forces.
The claim, made on social media, comes as Kyiv expands its use of unmanned systems and Moscow changes conscription rules.
The rise of drones has reshaped fighting on the ground and at sea, creating units that operate with speed and reach previously unseen in the conflict. Kyiv has moved to centralise many of those capabilities under a new command.
Major Brovdi
Robert “Magyar” Brovdi was named to lead Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in early June. The appointment formalised his move from commanding the Birds of the Magyar, an aerial reconnaissance and strike group, into the new branch.
A former businessman from Zakarpattia, Brovdi volunteered after the full-scale invasion and has been mainly deployed on the eastern front. His unit grew from a small reconnaissance team into one of Ukraine’s best-known drone formations.
Drones’ role
Ukraine says the Unmanned Systems Forces are the first dedicated military branch focused on unmanned aerial, ground and maritime systems.
The new service is intended to amplify Kyiv’s battlefield reach and offset manpower gaps.
In a post on X on November 7, Brovdi posted figures he said recorded his unit’s results over roughly the past 18 months. He wrote: “We’ve lost 27 of our own. In return, we destroyed 24,895 Russian troops and 76,950 targets. That’s two entire army corps. For every one of ours – 1,000 of theirs.”
The claim has been carried by several outlets and circulated widely online; it has not been independently verified by neutral observers in the field. Brovdi’s tally is presented as an internal count of strikes and effects attributed to his forces.
Casualty context
Ukraine’s own tallies and open-source aggregators place much larger figures on overall Russian losses in the war; one public tracker lists about 1,148,910 Russian casualties (killed and wounded) since 2022.
Those nationwide estimates differ in method and scope from the unit-level figures Brovdi posted.
Analysts caution that frontline tallies can double-count or rely on battlefield reporting that is hard to independently confirm, and national estimates vary between Ukrainian, Western intelligence and independent monitors.
Manpower pressure
Moscow’s need to sustain troop numbers has prompted legal changes in recent weeks. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law in early November that moves the country toward year-round conscription, ending the long-standing seasonal draft model.
The change is intended to make recruiting and medical screening continuous.
Brovdi’s message also included operational intent: he pledged more strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, a target set Kyiv has repeatedly prioritised.
He urged young Ukrainians to join his drone battalion, saying: “We need people who will use drones to relentlessly crush the worms from a distance.”
What it means
Whether or not Brovdi’s exact numbers stand up to outside verification, his post underscores how central drone units have become in Ukraine’s strategy and public messaging.
The figures bolster recruitment messages and highlight how Kyiv uses technology to multiply effect on the battlefield.
Critics and independent monitors will look for corroboration of strike claims and for evidence of how those numbers were recorded. Meanwhile, Moscow’s conscription reform signals a continued emphasis on replenishing ground forces.
You can find Brovdi’s update on the X-profile of the 414 Magyar Birds here (opens new tab).
Sources: Ministry of Defence of Ukraine; UNN; Pronews (reporting Brovdi’s X post); UkraineWarLosses public tracker; The Moscow Times; AP; Novaya Gazeta
This article is made and published by Jens Asbjørn Bogen, who may have used AI in the preparation
