"Come Back Alive" has raised over UAH 10 billion to help the Defense Forces

From February 24, 2022, to the end of December 2023, more than UAH 10 billion was donated to the Come Back Alive Foundation for Competent Assistance to the Army to help the Ukrainian Defense Forces. In total, the organization has received 2,862,453 donations from more than 90 countries. The average donation amount is UAH 3,562.

These funds provide daily assistance with drones, optics, power, communications, and even weapons for more than 650 units, subunits, and formations of the Defense Forces.

Among other things, since February 24, 2022, Come Back Alive has purchased for the army:

• Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicle system;
• 26 Leleka-100 unmanned aerial systems consisting of 72 UAVs;
• 25 Shark unmanned aerial systems consisting of 75 UAVs;
• 11 PD-2 reconnaissance systems;
• 8,920 copters; 
• 20,200 FPV drones with ammunition;
• 1,460 machine guns of 7.62 mm caliber;
• 286 120-mm mortars;
• 200 automatic machine guns of 12.7 mm caliber;
• 300 mortars of 82 mm caliber;
• 50 automatic grenade launchers;
• 1,000 ATGL-L3 hand-held grenade launchers;
• 1,240 new vehicles;
• 11 armored vehicles;
• 10 maintenance workshops;
• 37,084 walkie-talkies;
• 16,022 tablets;
• 8,384 units of thermal imaging and night optics;
• 1,897 optical sights.

“We managed to raise more than UAH 10 billion thanks to caring people and responsible businesses,” says Oleh Karpenko, Deputy Director of the Come Back Alive Foundation. “More than UAH 2 billion of these funds were spent on preparing the troops for the summer offensive campaign of 2023 alone. We also provided transportation and equipment for sappers who clear the liberated territories and pave the way for our equipment and assault forces at the front. We have already handed 10 maintenance workshops to the army, which allow to repair Western military equipment in the field. We have helped the cyber forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to build infrastructure to better counter russian aggression. We have deployed eight tactical medicine training complexes in the Armed Forces. We continue to improve air defense communications. And this is just a part of our work.”

In 2022-2023, the Foundation had more than 50 projects. The largest amount – UAH 400 million – was raised together with the OKKO filling station chain as part of the initiative “Eye for an Eye 2. Let’s arm the Territorial Defence to the teeth” last year in April-December. All 200 large-caliber machine guns, 40 automatic grenade launchers and some mortars purchased under this initiative have already been delivered to the units of the Territorial Defense Forces. Earlier, together with OKKO, we also raised UAH 325 million for 25 Shark reconnaissance systems. All of them are already working at the front line.

In addition, Come Back Alive had a large independent fundraising of UAH 333 million for reconnaissance and strike systems with 120-mm mortars as part of the project “TDF’s Long Arms”.

In June-December, the Foundation raised UAH 330 million together with Nova Poshta as part of the “Protect the Sky – Boost Air Defense” project. These funds are used to strengthen air defense with modern means of communication. The Center Air Command has already received integrated hardware communications, wearable communications and control kits, and telecommunications kits. We will also provide them with mobile command stations based on cross-country trucks.

In November 2022, Come Back Alive and blogger Ihor Lachenkov raised UAH 230 million for the Black Box initiative. Last year, the Foundation disclosed that one of the components of the project was Ukrainian-made barrage munitions “Beaver” for the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine.

Other major projects of the Foundation include the Unity Operation and the Unity 2: New Year’s Fireworks Operation together with UNITED24 and monobank. The first project has been fully implemented. All 10,000 FPV drones and ammunition have already been delivered to the Defense Forces.

The Foundation also raised UAH 180 million for the “We Live Here” project with Kyivstar. As a result, 106 of the 146 planned sapper groups of the Support Forces have already received new pickup trucks and basic demining equipment.

“Come Back Alive” has been helping the army since the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian war in 2014. In the first eight years, from spring 2014 to February 24, 2022, donors provided over UAH 281.6 million to the Foundation for the needs of the army. Last year in November, Come Back Alive reported that it had raised more than UAH 9 billion.

In 2023, the Foundation’s instructors trained more than 1,500 military in the area of “Shooting from closed firing positions using the ARMOR graphical and calculation complex”. About 300 soldiers were trained and upgraded in mine safety. 600 marksmen are being trained as part of the Beastmen project.

More than 7,900 people have completed online intensive training courses for UAV operators, which were launched in 2022 by the Foundation’s aerial reconnaissance instructors on the Prometheus platform. 

Come Back Alive analysts presented important research in the field of security and defense, including the experience of using the Territorial Defense Forces and Ukraine’s membership in NATO as the only effective guarantee of security.

The Foundation’s team also implements sports rehabilitation projects for veterans and servicemen, including organizing the participation of the Ukrainian national team in the Invictus Games and the United States Air Force and Marine Corps Trials 2024.