Vasyl A. Hnatiuk

The 22-year-old navigator pilot Vasyl Hnatiuk was killed in action on February 28, 2022, defending Kyiv region. During the execution of combat tasks in the area of the village of Makariv, a hostile missile hit the Mi-8 helicopter on board of which the military man was. The entire crew . Vasyl was born in Brody, Lviv region. In 2021, he graduated from Kharkiv National University of the Air Force named after Ivan Kozhedub. The guy received the specialty of a navigator pilot and an officer rank. After graduation, he was assigned to the 16th separate brigade of army aviation. Since the first days of the full-scale war, Vasyl was defending the sky of Ukraine from Russian invaders. On the day of his death, the crew consisting of Oleksandr Hryhoriev, Dmytro Nesteruk, and Vasyl Hnatiuk was performing combat tasks. Unfortunately, a hostile missile claimed the lives of all three pilots. "Vasyl was a bright and sincere person. He dreamed of becoming a pilot since childhood, so he confidently pursued his goal. He was happy with every flight. He was defending our state from the first day of the war. Only after the liberation of Kyiv region from the invaders, it was possible to retrieve the bodies of our defenders," said Natalia, the sister of the deceased officer. "Together with Oleksandr Hryhoriev, his crew : navigator pilot Vasyl Hnatiuk, onboard aviation technician Dmytro Nesteruk. They were just young boys. Lads. Dima graduated from KhNUPS in 2019, and Vasyl received his first officer rank just three months ago... The crew of Sasha was buried in Brody. All three of them - together. The crew. Forever," wrote Vasyl Mulik. Vasyl left behind his mother and sister. Posthumously, Senior Lieutenant Vasyl Hnatiuk was awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky III degree.