Or...they just intercepted Ukrainian radio and cyber traffic on a report on the strike.
Or of a doctor in the hospital.
Or some E4 on a “secure” app.
“Not 52 or 54, but 53. The Russians must have an amazing intelligence-gathering system. Or maybe they’re just making stuff up.”
To get a total such as 53 would generally require more than one intercept, or it would require a high-level intercept or inside source.
At best it is an estimate based on photos, but it is quite likely to be at least partially made up.
The crew’s Recon officer picks the firing points for his platoon usually shortly before firing. He’s supposed to send the firing coordinates via encrypted radio transmission. Since it’s 1st of the month I can see a platoon having expired crypto and transmitting in the plain thus giving away the firing points. By doctrine that cancels the mission. No crypto, no missions.
So it could have happened. But I doubt it. Just follow the manual and training and everyone wins and lives.