Forbes reports that Ukraine's military created the Harpies in April, a drone and robotic combat unit where women will exclusively pilot the unmanned systems delivering lethal strikes.
The unit includes men in support roles, but Ukrainian military officials confirmed that women alone will execute the final attacks.
As of January, more than 70,000 women were serving in Ukraine's military, including roughly 5,500 in combat roles, according to Oksana Hryhorieva, the military's gender adviser. That figure represents about 8 percent of total force strength, but marks a 40 percent increase since 2021. Hryhorieva told NPR that women now serve across nearly all specialties, including while pregnant.
In the Zaporizhzhia sector, Ukraine's National Guard deployed its first all-female FPV drone strike crew. The unit drives its own vehicles, builds its own munitions and conducts live attack missions without male personnel. After the unit destroyed a Russian howitzer in its first confirmed strike, its commander told the Washington Post: "We won't win this war without women."
The shift extends beyond military ranks. Alina Holovko, lead coordinator of Dobra Sprava, a humanitarian network based in Dnipro, has overseen the evacuation of more than 40,000 civilians from frontline areas since February 2022. Holovko launched the initiative on the second day of the war by organizing a Telegram group for first-aid training and emergency preparedness.
"More and more often, it is women who are behind the wheel of evacuation buses, organizing the delivery of humanitarian aid and working in crisis zones," Holovko said. "They have become a strong and reliable rear."
The network initially prepared Molotov cocktails for city defense before shifting entirely to humanitarian logistics and civilian evacuation. Holovko secured warehouse space, organized supplies and managed volunteers as requests for evacuations surged from heavily shelled areas. The effort expanded through social media and word of mouth, linking drivers, medics and temporary housing across the country.
Many evacuees were in shock after witnessing killings and fleeing without communication or shelter, according to Holovko. Volunteer drivers continued operating close to Russian positions despite direct threats.
The increasing role of women stems partly from personnel shortages. Dobra Sprava operated with more than 20 volunteer drivers at the start of 2022, most of them men. Today, nearly all have joined the armed forces, while older volunteers can no longer sustain the physical demands. "Currently, our foundation operates two crews with women drivers," Holovko said, adding that the number continues to grow.
"Men are critically lacking," Holovko noted, forcing women into roles once considered exclusively male, including evacuations from frontline areas, driving heavy vehicles and delivering supplies into active combat zones.
According to Forbes, the protracted nature of the conflict has intensified reliance on civilian logistics and volunteer networks. Adrian Karatnycky, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, wrote in Foreign Policy that restrictions on how Kyiv could conduct its fight helped lock the conflict into a prolonged war of attrition.
Many women begin volunteering after loved ones are mobilized but remain because the work becomes a calling, Holovko said. "When you see the need, gender does not matter," she said. "The war has forced women to become braver, more decisive and ready to take responsibility where it matters most."
