Due to the enormous losses, this brigade completely changed at least three compositions, according to the data of the nominal list of losses, which «Verstka»* received from the project «I Want to Live», verified and analyzed.
«Soldiers were sent to death, to the 'meat', like blind kittens» — this is a quote from the appeal of the relatives of the «black hussars» — soldiers of the 15th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade. It is probably the most «bloody» brigade in the Russian army in the war with Ukraine.
Since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, the brigade has lost more than 12,000 people. At least 7,436 servicemen were killed, another 5,253 were declared missing — this status can also be assigned to the dead if the evacuation of their bodies is difficult or impossible, or if they were deliberately killed by their own.
The greatest losses occurred at the end of 2024 — the beginning of 2025.
The lists include deceased servicemen of the brigade from at least 77 Russian regions. Most frequently mentioned are Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, and Udmurtia. Among the dead are also citizens of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Egypt, as well as residents of annexed Crimea and the Luhansk region of Ukraine.
About 89% of all losses were among the rank and file, including privates, corporals, sailors, and senior sailors. The remaining 10% were servicemen in the positions of petty officers, ship petty officers, warrant officers, and sergeants. Only 1% of the losses were among the officer corps.
In 2025, a record one-time payment was established in the Samara region for signing a contract with the Ministry of Defense — 3.6 million rubles. As «Verstka» previously wrote, this is most likely due to the fact that contractors from the Samara region are sent on «meat assaults».
* Recognized in Russia as a «foreign agent».