Russia’s war machine produced another spectacular failure when a Tu-95 strategic bomber crashed and burned after three engines failed during takeoff. For a military trying to project overwhelming power, losing a strategic bomber this way is not exactly a triumphal look.

The episode prompted a mocking suggestion that Russian commanders should generate an AI video showing that they have conquered all of Ukraine. They could then declare victory and go home, sparing themselves the inconvenience of dealing with reality.

The bomber crash was only one item in a broader collection of Russian military trouble. Ukraine also struck a cargo ship as it neared a Russian port, adding another dramatic incident to the grim battlefield picture presented in the source.

The source further reports another 1,440 Russians entering the meat grinder, along with four rocket launchers. It does not provide additional details about those figures, so the numbers stand as presented without further explanation.

More substantial evidence of disorder comes from Russia’s 127th Motor Rifle Division, described as devastated by casualties and desertions. Internal Russian military documents obtained by Cyber-ATESH detail serious problems inside the division.

The ATESH partisan movement reported on September 29 that the documents show battlefield losses, mass unauthorized absences, suicides and significant disciplinary problems. The records offer a bleak view of conditions within the division’s ranks and command.

When considered alongside battlefield reporting and independent Russian investigations, the documents suggest the division’s official casualty accounting may lag significantly behind losses recorded at the front. They also suggest that some units are struggling with deep morale and command problems.

A Cyber-ATESH document dated March 5, 2025, recorded 1,762 soldiers killed since Russia launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine. The same document listed 1,863 soldiers as missing.

The records also listed 9,018 soldiers as wounded. Those figures represent the division’s own documented accounting as described by Cyber-ATESH, rather than a polished tale of Russian military strength or control.

Unauthorized absences compound the division’s casualty burden. Taken together, the documents reviewed by Cyber-ATESH show more than 2,300 such absences, exposing another major strain on the division.

That figure is equivalent to more than a quarter of the division’s nominal strength, although some of the individuals involved may have returned to service. Even with that qualification, the documented scale of unauthorized absence is substantial.

Internal records also list 42 noncombat losses during 2024. Six of those losses were suicides, adding another disturbing element to the division’s problems beyond battlefield casualties and missing personnel.

The threat posed by Russia’s evolving attack methods remains serious despite these internal failures. Russia is simultaneously using inexpensive Gerbera drones as decoys, standard Geran-2s, jet powered Geran-4s and heavier Geran-5s.

Russia is also combining those drones with cruise and ballistic missiles. For Ukrainian air defense, that creates large numbers of targets appearing simultaneously at different speeds and altitudes, with different interception systems required to respond.

The source describes this as a new type of warfare for which no country is prepared. It argues that no country currently has air defenses capable of protecting its entire territory for an extended period against thousands of drones combined with cruise and ballistic missiles.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy also says Russian mobilization has already started. The report mocks efforts to convince Russians to step forward voluntarily to defend the Motherland, suggesting mobilization proved the easier method.

The material was created by a Daily Kos Community member and was not reviewed by Daily Kos staff before publication. Daily Kos describes itself as independent progressive media supported by readers rather than billionaires or corporations.