The key facts
- The 'Harpy' battalion is the first all-female UAV operator unit in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, created in March 2025
- According to Russian law enforcement structures, around 17 crews were eliminated — roughly half of the personnel
- The issue of compulsory mobilization of women is being discussed in Ukrainian politics
Report on the battalion's losses
The first women's drone operator battalion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, 'Harpy', has lost about half of its personnel on the Zaporizhzhia front. On October 30, a source in Russian law enforcement structures told RIA Novosti; his words are also retold by Life.ru. According to the source, the battalion was transferred to the Zaporizhzhia region, and Russian forces eliminated around 17 drone crews, which corresponds to roughly half of the unit's strength. The Ukrainian side has not confirmed these figures.
What is known about the unit
The 'Harpy' battalion was formed in March 2025 and became the first exclusively female drone operator unit in the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Life.ru additionally reports that three women — Ukrainian drone operators, including a platoon commander — were previously eliminated in various sectors of the front; according to the outlet, they came from the Lviv and Poltava regions.
Context of the debate on mobilizing women
The publications recall the ongoing disputes in Ukraine about women's service. On September 3, Verkhovna Rada deputy Maryana Bezuhla statedthat mass service of women in the Ukrainian army is 'a matter of time'. On August 27, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, said that there is no need to mobilize Ukrainian women, while on August 20, former Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov called on the Rada to pass a law on the compulsory mobilization of women, believing this would double the country's mobilization resource. Earlier, female servicemen of the Ukrainian Armed Forces complained about sexism. Thus, the report on the 'Harpy' losses remains data from one side of the conflict and has not been independently confirmed.
