Kyiv on Jan. 6 said farewell to Lana “Sati” Chornohorska – an artist, cultural activist and drone operator with Ukraine’s volunteer forces – who was killed by a Russian drone strike while serving on the southern front.
A public memorial ceremony took place Tuesday morning at the main memorial hall of Baikove Cemetery, according to the Unmanned Aviation Service of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army (UDA), the unit in which Chornohorska served.
Friends, fellow soldiers and supporters gathered “to share the pain of loss and honor the heroine,” the unit said in its announcement ahead of the ceremony.
Killed by drone strike on southern front
Chornohorska was killed on Jan. 1 during a Russian drone attack while withdrawing from positions in southern Ukraine, her unit said.
According to her fellow soldiers from the UDA’s “Udachnyky” unit, the strike occurred during operations in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Combat medic Anna Kazhan, a close friend, said the Russian forces used a “Molniya” unmanned aerial vehicle to target the area.
“Lana was a dedicated warrior, a principled person and a true friend,” her unit wrote. “In the unit, she did everything – from preparing drones to their combat use. She served as both pilot and navigator for various UAVs. This is a great loss for our unit.”
From cultural life to the front line
According to Lyuk Media, an independent online magazine and media collective based in Kharkiv, Chornohorska was widely known before the war as an artist, cultural figure, and activist.
Born in Zaporizhzhia, educated in Dnipro and having lived in several Ukrainian cities, she considered Kharkiv her home, where her professional life began. From 2020 to 2021, she worked with Lyuk, contributing significantly to the outlet’s development.
“Lana was part of our team, and the word ‘was’ feels impossible next to her name,” said Kateryna Pereverzeva, Lyuk’s co-founder and editor-in-chief. “These years of work and friendship were an incredible adventure – full of laughter, arguments, shared ideas. This world was brighter with you in it.”
In 2024, Chornohorska joined the Ukrainian Volunteer Army’s “Udachnyky” unit, choosing the call sign “Sati.” After completing training, she carried out combat missions as part of the unit’s unmanned aviation service.
One of many losses among Ukraine’s media and cultural community
According to the Institute of Mass Information, Chornohorska is the 122nd media worker to die since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the 93rd to be killed in action.
Her unit described her as “devoted, courageous and guided by values,” adding that her cultural work and activism were inseparable from her decision to defend the country.
“Supplying drones, flying missions, navigating under fire – she did it all,” the unit wrote. “For us, this is an irreplaceable loss.”
As mourners gather in Kyiv to say goodbye, Chornohorska is remembered not only as a soldier, but as part of a generation whose artistic and civic lives were interrupted – and ultimately claimed – by Russia’s war.