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Cake day: July 1st, 2023

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  • Definitions of “cargo 200” and “cargo 300” The names originated from the Afghan war - when the Soviet Union sent troops into Afghanistan and wounded and killed appeared, the names “cargo 200” and “cargo 300” appeared. They are also called “two hundred” and “three hundred”. The “two hundred” are the killed. The “three hundred” are the wounded.

    "The bodies of the soldiers were sealed in zinc coffins. A standard wooden coffin with a body is sealed with zinc sheets and placed in a wooden box, which has standard dimensions for loading onto a vehicle. This entire structure (wooden box, zinc coffin, and coffin with the body) typically weighs about 200 kg. This, according to one version, is where the name “cargo 200” comes from.

    This was probably due to the need to load it on the plane when the soldiers were being delivered from Afghanistan. The pilots always checked the weight of the cargo. They weighed it and understood that this structure weighed about 200 kg. This name “cargo 200” was passed on from the pilots to the military and became a permanent fixture in the military lexicon. For example, the question “Are there two hundreds?” means “Are there any killed?”

    When a soldier is wounded, the unit commander fills out form number 300. Thus, this numbering became slang according to one version."