Ihor V. Moroz

23-year-old military pilot Ihor Moroz on March 8, 2022, during the battle for Kyiv. During the execution of a combat mission to destroy enemy personnel and equipment, Ihor's helicopter was shot down. The entire crew perished. Ihor was born in Kharkiv. His grandfather and father were military pilots, so the young man quickly decided on his future profession. In 2020, he graduated from the Kharkiv National Air Force University named after Ivan Kozhedub. In his free time, he enjoyed sports, reading, learning foreign languages, and was interested in photography. But his main passion was aviation. After graduation, the young officer was assigned to the 11th Separate Brigade of Army Aviation. He was a helicopter navigator. From the first days of the full-scale war, Ihor defended the Ukrainian sky over the capital from the invaders. He successfully and bravely destroyed the enemy, but the officer was not destined to live until victory. "Ihor Moroz met the war at Vasylkiv airbase. Under bombardment, he flew to a safe spot in Kyiv. After that, he almost daily carried out 2–3 combat flights in the areas of Irpin, Hostomel, and the Zhytomyr highway. We only had time to reload and fly again to destroy the enemy. On March 8, Ihor flew into the sky forever. A few days before his death, I told Ihor that I didn't want to die and was very afraid. He replied, "I'm also afraid. But this is our duty." Ihor was braver than all of us who were there, I could see it in his eyes... On the day of his death, his girlfriend wrote to him not to be a hero and remember his relatives. Ihor replied, "I will fight for Ukraine to the end, everything else is unimportant." He is an example of a true man, friend, citizen, and officer," said Ihor's best friend and comrade-in-arms, Pavlo. The hero was buried in his father's homeland, the city of Oster, Chernihiv region. Ihor left behind his parents, sister, and two brothers. Before the officer's death, a proposal was submitted for his award with the Order of Danilo Halytskyi, but the decree was signed after his death. Posthumously, Ihor Moroz was also awarded the rank of captain and the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytskyi III degree.