The material was prepared based on the available data from www.safesoldiers.am database.
Over the past six years, 33% of the fatalities in non-combat situations occurred because of fatal accidents.
67 fatalities out of 206 recorded in the RA and NK armed forces during the period 2010-2015 were fatal accidents. That number does not include the fatalities that were the result of ceasefire regime violations on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and the line of contact. That number of the accidents is presented in Infographic 1.
Infographic 1. The number of accidents by years.
Comparing the number of deaths caused by accidents and the ones that were the result of ceasefire violations registered during the same period it becomes clear that until 2014 the number of victims in both cases is equal, while in 2015 there was an unprecedented increase of numbers of victims (See Infographic 2). If the increase in the number of victims of ceasefire regime violation can be explained by the tensions on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, the increase in the number of fatal accidents is not conditioned by any factor.
Infographic 2. Comparison between the number of soldiers deceased in fatal incidents and ceasefire regime violations for the period 2010-2015
Depending on the established army structure the military unit of 7-9 servicemen comprises one squad. Three squads make one platoon, while a number of platoons form one military company. Thus, approximately 70-100 soldiers serve in one company. Guided by these criteria, during the last 6 years the Armenian army lost approximately one company of soldiers (See Infographic 3) as a result of fatal accidents.
Infographic 3. Within the period of 2010-2015 the Armenian military forces lost approximately 1 military company of soldiers as a result of fatal accidents.
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The Infographic 4 shows the fatal accidents by causes. The accidents of civil and military vehicles prevail (76%) among the causes of deaths of soldiers. In many cases those were personal cars not the vehicles that were attached to a military unit. Thus, it is not clear whether the soldiers were on duty or not at the time of the accident. The prevailing number of victims died in military vehicle accidents. It is not clear whether the accidents were caused by the violations of traffic rules or by the malfunction of military equipment. We have applied to the RA Investigative Committee for the information regarding investigations of these cases. We will make the appropriate additions to this article after receiving relevant information about the cases or the concrete persons who were brought to responsibility.
Infographic 4. The fatal accidents and their causes for 2010-2015.
There are a number of incidents (15%) that are difficult to classify: drowning, falls from height, avalanche, etc. 6% of the fatalities occurred during military training. There is a separate category of deaths by electrocutions (3%). Due to lack of sufficient information about death cases related to the last two causes, it is difficult to say whether the attitude or negligence of co-servicemen and officers played a role in this.
