Natasha Grabarchuk, who used an 18 kg Igla surface-to-air (SAM) missile to destroy the enemy projectile, won praise from her colleagues for her successful shot, footage of which went viral.

On the morning of November 17, Ukrainian Defender Nataliia Hrabarchuk destroyed a Russian cruise missile with Igla MANPADS. It was her first combat launch and her first hit!

Before joining the Army, Nataliia was a kindergarten teacher.

"When the enemy missile came before me, I… https://t.co/evxZ2bltg2 pic.twitter.com/HRcR8jVFwf

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) November 17, 2024

Grabarchuk was a kindergarten teacher before she joined the Ukrainian armed forces to defend her homeland.

She is part of an anti-aircraft missile unit within the Galicia-Volyn Radio Engineering Brigade of the "West" Air Command, Anton Gerashchenko, a former advisor to Ukraine’s interior minister, said on the X platform.

Grabarchuk previously completed a five-month course where she received training in various types of portable air defense systems, Polish public broadcaster TVP Info reported.