A fifth of Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine are officers who were sent to the battlefield to oversee Putin's chaotic invasion, analysis has shown.
An investigation found that of 1,083 Russian servicemen killed whose identity has been verified, more than 20 per cent were officers.
BBC Russian Service counted 31 majors and 155 servicemen ranked between captain and second lieutenant among the dead.
Their bodies were returned to their homeland up to a month after their death, suggesting their could be many more high profile casualties still in Ukraine.
The high death toll betrays baffling Kremlin tactics which have seen officers being sent to the battlefield to make their tactical decisions, putting them in danger.
In the West, these roles are delegated to non-commissioned officers.
The most recent officer identified among the growing Kremlin death toll was Lieutenant Colonel Vyacheslav Savinov (pictured)
An extra 15 per cent of the identified fatalities were elite paratroopers and 25 per cent were special forces personnel.
They were likely killed in the battle for Hostomel airport near Kyiv, where Russian paratroopers (VDV) were deployed by helicopter on the first day of the brutal invasion.
They were sent with unarmoured light vehicles and when infantry was halted in the convoy towards Kyiv, more paratroopers were airlifted in.
Oleksiy Melnyk, a retired colonel and director at the Razumkov centre, told The Times: 'VDV are considered to be the most combat ready, effective, but at the same time they are not usually equipped with infantry fighting vehicles.
A funeral was held for Colonel Alexander Bespalov (pictured) on Friday in the closed Russian city of Ozersk
'They are only equipped with light vehicles — they have no heavy armour. It's another one of those stupid mistakes to use your special forces to complete infantry tasks.'
The most recent officer identified among the growing Kremlin death toll was Lieutenant Colonel Vyacheslav Savinov, head of artillery reconnaissance for the 49th Combined Arms Army.
The decorated 40-year-old from Neustrelitz in former East Germany had fought in Syria where he was wounded.
Earlier this week, Putin lost his ninth colonel in battle , as Moscow's losses continue to mount up.
A funeral was held for Colonel Alexander Bespalov on Friday in the closed Russian city of Ozersk, according to a local announcement, which said he was killed 'during a special military operation in Ukraine' - a term used by Moscow to avoid saying 'war'.
The statement said Bespalov was the commander of the 59th Guards Tank Regiment.
Targeted strikes against slow-moving Russian tank units have allowed Ukraine's forces to compensate for their inferior numbers, with latest estimates from Kyiv defence officials suggesting the Kremlin has lost more than 4,000 military vehicles.
In addition, Ukraine's Ministry of Defence estimates that Russia has sent more than 19,500 troops to their deaths.
The Kremlin has a policy of playing down military casualties with a 2015 decree declaring all deaths in conflict a state secret, and last year any statements discrediting the military were criminalised.
Pictured: A car drives past a burnt Russian tank on a road west of Kyiv during Russia's military invasion launched on Ukraine
Pictured: A Ukrainian serviceman stands atop on destroyed Russian tank in Chernihiv region, Ukraine
A picture of Bespalov showed he was a highly decorated officer, with two rows of medals emblazoned on his chest. Tributes to the commander were shared with the announcement that was posted on local message board called 'Overheard Novogorny' - a small town near Ozersk.
The announcement of his funeral has since been deleted. Ozersk is a closed Russian city, meaning travel in and out is heavily restricted. Code-named City 40, Ozersk was the birthplace of the Soviet nuclear weapons programme after World War Two.
One tribute, from the colonel's sister, said: 'It is impossible to put into words what pain you feel when you lose a close and dear person,' Tatyana Karsakova, wrote. 'Dear brother, you will always be alive in our hearts!'
A fellow officer said: 'I did not know and did not meet a more worthy person who had the right to call himself an officer than my first commander Alexander Bespalov, who became my friend, whose family I was closely acquainted with.'
The colonel is the latest in a long line of slain Russian military leaders, which experts say betray the Kremlin's blundering tactics in the brutal invasion.
Is is believed there are now a total of nine colonels and seven generals who have been killed by defiant Ukrainian forces in the month-long war.
While Moscow has made efforts to conceal its true losses in Ukraine, Kyiv has boasted each time its forces have slain a high-ranking Russian officer.
On March 30, officials said it had 'eliminated' Colonel Denis Kurilo, commander of the 200th separate motorised rifle brigade, who led Russia's bloody assault in Kharkiv where he was killed in battle.
Kyiv said it had 'eliminated' Colonel Denis Kurilo (pictured), commander of the 200th separate motorised rifle brigade, in fighting near Kharkiv
The brigade had suffered massive losses in the fierce battle near Ukraine's second biggest city
The brigade had suffered massive losses in the fierce fighting, the Ukrainian army's press office said.
A picture of Kurilo was shared with a red X through it to announce his death.
Two battalion groups in the 200th brigade were destroyed, with a staggering loss of 1,500 servicemen, Ukraine has claimed.
It was revealed on the same day that Lieutenant Colonel Dmitry Dormidontov was killed on March 20 as his funeral was held in Russia ten days later.
A source in the Tatarstan region of Russia said: 'Commander of the rocket artillery division, Lt-Col Dmitry Pavlovich Dormidontov, died while on duty,' said an account.
'An enemy mine hit exactly in his dugout, where there were three officers: a division commander, a battalion commander and an aircraft controller.'
Another loss was Lt-Col Igor Zharov who was buried in Kirzhach town, Vladimir region.
'He died during a military operation to demilitarise and deNazify Ukraine,' said an obituary which revealed he had been honoured by Putin.
Local MP Igor Igoshin said: 'Igor Zharov was posthumously awarded the Order of Courage.
'Since childhood, he had wanted to become a military man. He studied at the famous Kirzhach School of the Army.'
A picture of Kurilo was shared with a red cross through it to announce his death
Lieutenant Colonel Dmitry Dormidontov was killed on March 20
Colonel Nikolay Ovcharenko, chief of the Western Military District engineer troops, was killed in an ambush that left a total of 18 Russians dead by a pontoon bridge over the Siverskyi Donets River.
Colonel Alexei Sharov, commander of the 810th Guards Separate Order of Zhukov Brigade in the Russian Marines, was killed in Mariupol in March.
Colonel Sergei Sukharev, of the 331st Guards Parachute Assault Regiment from
