Russia prepared to fight with armored columns. Infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers, and other armored vehicles were meant to ensure the rapid advance of occupation forces deep into Ukrainian territory, deliver infantry to the front line, and support Russian assaults with fire.
That is how the Kremlin planned its so-called “special military operation” in February 2022. However, the Ukrainian land has become one of the largest graveyards of Russian armored vehicles in recent decades.
This is reported by Ivan Arefiev specifically for the Prompolitinform portal. In his latest article of the “War Budget” series, the author analyzes the dynamics of the destruction of Russian army AFVs in 2022–2026 and how Ukraine’s Defense Forces have forced the enemy to change tactics in using armored vehicles.
As of July 19, 2026 — the 1,606th day of the full-scale war — Ukraine’s Defense Forces, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, have destroyed 24,963 Russian army combat armored vehicles, including 7 units in the last 24 hours.
Nearly 25,000 destroyed enemy AFVs are not just a number in the daily report of the Ukrainian General Staff. Every destroyed infantry fighting vehicle or armored personnel carrier is equipment that will no longer deliver Russian infantry to Ukrainian positions. It will not shield the occupiers with armor. It will not support the next assault with fire. It will not become part of a mechanized column aimed at breaking through Ukrainian defenses. Overall, this means reduced mobility of Russian units, gradual depletion of the mechanized component of the occupation army, thousands of thwarted enemy attacks, and tens of thousands of Ukrainian military and civilian lives saved.
Nearly 25,000 Russian AFVs – About $15 Billion in Losses
The financial component of these losses is also staggering. According to preliminary estimates, the total cost of combat armored vehicles destroyed by Ukraine’s Defense Forces is approximately $15 billion US dollars.
Based on this calculation, the average cost of one lost vehicle is about $600,000. However, this is only a conditional average figure, as the General Staff category “combat armored vehicles” covers various types of equipment with different costs, technical conditions, and levels of modernization.
The total estimate of $15 billion also does not include expenses for ammunition, fuel, transportation, repairs, maintenance, evacuation of damaged vehicles, spare parts, and crew training. Thus, the actual cost of Russian armored vehicle losses could be significantly higher.
Statistics of Russian Army Combat Armored Vehicle Losses in 2022–2026
To determine annual dynamics, the overall figures from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine at the beginning or end of the respective calendar year were used.
2022 – 6,084 AFVs
From February 24 to December 31, 2022, Ukraine’s Defense Forces destroyed 6,084 enemy combat armored vehicles. The first year of the full-scale war was a period of routing Russian columns in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, and other regions.
2023 – 5,003 AFVs
As of January 1, 2024, the total losses of the Russian army reached 11,087 combat armored vehicles. Consequently, during 2023, approximately 5,003 AFVs were destroyed.
2024 – 8,956 AFVs
On the morning of January 1, 2025, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 20,043 destroyed combat armored vehicles. The difference compared to the figure at the beginning of 2024 is 8,956 units. This is currently the absolute annual record for destroying Russian army AFVs since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
2025 – about 3,800 AFVs
As of December 31, 2025, the total number of destroyed combat armored vehicles reached 23,845 units. Accordingly, during the year, the Russian army lost approximately 3.8 thousand AFVs.
2026 – over 1,100 AFVs as of July 17.
From the end of 2025 to July 17, 2026, the total figure increased from 23,845 to 24,946 units. Thus, since the beginning of the year, Ukraine’s Defense Forces have already destroyed over 1.1 thousand enemy combat armored vehicles.
The annual breakdown provided is estimated. It is based on the difference between the cumulative figures of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on control dates. Due to regular clarification of combat losses, individual annual values may differ by a few units.
Record Days of Destroying Russian Armored Vehicles
One of the most productive confirmed days was January 23, 2024, when the General Staff reported the destruction of 59 combat armored vehicles, as well as 22 tanks and 51 artillery systems of the enemy.
High figures were also recorded during other periods of intense fighting. In particular, on January 14, 2024, 33 destroyed AFVs were reported, and on January 24 – another 31 vehicles.
At the same time, it would be incorrect to form an indisputable overall TOP-5 rating for the entire period of the war based solely on media publications. The General Staff’s data is regularly updated, and high daily figures could have included the results of reconnaissance adjustments for previous periods.
That is why the figure of 59 AFVs should be called one of the largest confirmed daily results, rather than an absolute record without additional analysis of the full array of daily reports.
From Enemy Armored Columns Near Kyiv to Ukrainian Drone Hunting
At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia used armored vehicles in large columns. In February and March 2022, the whole world saw miles of Russian military equipment moving along Ukrainian roads. The Kremlin relied on speed, mass, and psychological effect. However, the Ukrainian army very quickly changed the rules of this war.
Anti-tank missile systems, artillery, minefields, precision-guided munitions, and later the massive use of FPV drones and other unmanned systems turned Russian armored vehicles from the main offensive tool into one of the highest-priority targets on the battlefield.
Today, even one armored vehicle approaching Ukrainian positions can simultaneously be in the field of view of several reconnaissance and strike drones. The battlefield has become much more transparent, and it has become much more difficult for heavy armored vehicles to survive in modern warfare.
If in 2022 the symbol of the Russian invasion was long columns of IFVs and APCs, today the Russian command is increasingly forced to seek other ways to deliver infantry to the front line. And this is also a direct consequence of the systematic destruction of Russian armored vehicles by Ukraine’s Defense Forces.
Russia Lost the Most Armored Vehicles in 2024
The statistics show that 2024 was the heaviest year for the Russian fleet of combat armored vehicles.
During this period, Ukraine’s Defense Forces destroyed nearly nine thousand AFVs – more than a third of all Russian losses in this category since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
This result can be explained by the high intensity of combat operations, massive Russian mechanized assaults, and the rapid development of Ukrainian unmanned systems.
At the same time, the decrease in the number of destroyed AFVs in 2025–2026 does not necessarily indicate a decline in the effectiveness of Ukraine’s Defense Forces. Rather, it also reflects a change in Russian tactics.
After huge losses, the enemy began to use armored vehicles more cautiously, use smaller assault groups, motorcycles, quad bikes, civilian vehicles, and attempt to advance infantry without full armored support.
In fact, Ukraine’s Defense Forces are not only destroying Russian equipment but also forcing the enemy to change its way of waging war.
Russia Is Burning the Soviet Military Legacy
To compensate for huge losses, Russia is increasingly forced to use equipment from long-term storage depots. Vehicles that stood on bases for decades are being repaired, partially modernized, and sent back to the front.
In fact, the Russian army is consuming the vast military legacy of the Soviet Union. But this resource is not infinite. The question is no longer just how many hulls of old armored vehicles remain at Russian storage bases. Their technical condition matters.
The longer the war lasts, the more difficult it becomes to return to service equipment that spent decades in the open air. This requires engines, transmissions, optics, electronics, spare parts, production capacities, skilled workers, and time.
With every subsequent thousand of Russian army AFVs destroyed, it becomes more difficult to compensate for losses with equipment of similar quality. New combat vehicles also cannot be produced in unlimited quantities.
That is why the war has long turned not just into a confrontation of armies. It is a competition of military-industrial complexes, technologies, logistics, resources, and economic endurance.
Money That Could Have Gone to Development Has Become Russia’s Scorched “War Budget”
Fifteen billion dollars is a huge amount of money. Hypothetically, these resources could have worked for Russia’s own development.
With such funds, hospitals and schools could have been built, roads, railway and municipal infrastructure modernized, depressed regions developed, or hundreds of thousands of families provided with housing. Instead, the Kremlin chose a different path.
Fifteen billion dollars of Russian resources today lie as burned hulls of IFVs, APCs, and other armored vehicles on Ukrainian soil. And this “war budget” continues to grow every day.
Nearly 25,000 destroyed combat armored vehicles, estimated at about $15 billion, are not only Russia’s financial losses.
It is the gradual loss by the Russian army of one of the key tools for waging offensive war.
First, Ukraine’s Defense Forces stopped Russian armored columns near Kyiv. Then they began systematically destroying armored vehicles along the entire front line.
Today, this work is continued daily by artillerymen, anti-tank system operators, sappers, reconnaissance personnel, unmanned systems crews, and thousands of Ukrainian soldiers.
At the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia expected its armored columns to quickly pass along Ukrainian roads – it didn’t happen.
Nearly 25,000 destroyed combat armored vehicles are one of the most compelling proofs of the failure of those plans. Because for Ukraine’s Defense Forces, the best enemy combat armored vehicle is one that will never again bring Russian soldiers to Ukrainian positions.
Author: Ivan Arefiev
Collage: Andrii Atlantov
Photo from open sources
