Three Students Recruited as Drone Operators Killed in Front-Line Combat, BBC Russia Investigation Finds
BBC Russia traced the stories of three college students who enlisted in Russian drone units after a recruitment drive but were sent to assault roles and died within months.
An investigation by BBC Russia has revealed that several Russian students recruited as drone operators in late 2025 were deployed to front-line assault units instead and died within a few months of signing contracts. The students were promised good pay, a one-year term, and positions far from the front line, none of which materialized.
Vladislav Gorbunov, an 18-year-old from Unecha in the Bryansk region, was studying railroad construction at a local college. He signed a contract in December 2025 as a drone operator but was first sent to an assault company. His brother Danat said relatives tried to dissuade him, but he wouldn't listen. After surviving the assault unit, he was transferred to a drone unit and killed on April 6 from blood loss while on a combat mission. Only four months passed between signing the contract and his death.
Valery Averin, 23, from Buryatia, grew up in an orphanage and was later adopted. He was in his final year at a construction college when he signed a contract in January 2026 without telling his family. His adoptive mother, Oksana Afanasyeva, said he lied about going to work at Wildberries. After training as a drone operator, he was sent to an assault unit despite never having served in the military. He was killed in a mortar attack on April 8.
Rakhim Abdullin, 18, from Bashkortostan, studied welding at a mining college. He signed a contract in early January 2026, choosing to become a drone operator because he thought it would be safer. However, his mother Elena said he quickly realized drone operators are also on the front line. He was issued a defective rifle and worn-out gear, forcing him and fellow soldiers to chip in their own money for supplies. Abdullin was killed on March 13, two months after leaving home. A friend anonymously told BBC that Abdullin had written to him in mid-January: "You know where you can make some real cash? The SVO. The government will even thank you for it." When the friend objected that contract soldiers are sent to their deaths, Abdullin replied: "They won't throw you into an assault. I'm a drone operator. And it's fucking great."
