Pilot Danylo Murashko was killed while performing a combat mission in Kramatorsk District, Donetsk Regionб the 299th Tactical Aviation Brigade named after Lt-Gen Vasyl Nikiforov has said.
The funeral was held on 30 January. Murashko, the commander of an aviation unit, had flown 141 combat missions since the first day of the Russian full-scale armed aggression.
He destroyed about 70 armoured vehicles, more than 80 vehicles, about 30 tankers of fuel and lubricants, and about 600 enemy personnel. He repeatedly rescued aircraft from enemy air and missile attacks.
Murashko was awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytskyy of all three degrees. While performing a combat mission as part of a pair on 27 January 2023, he was shot down by an Russian fighter.
"Seeing the village of Shabelkivka nearby, the pilot, despite the low altitude, tried to divert the plane away from residential buildings until the last second. As a result, he lost altitude, could not safely eject and died a hero's death. Maj Murashko has been nominated by the command of the military unit for the title of Hero of Ukraine (posthumously)," the brigade said.