Interview: Widow of Ukrainian Pilot Hero Vladyslav Levchuk

YUSUF INAN - INTERVIEW

WISE NEWS PRESS / KYIV, UKRAINE — NOVEMBER 19, 2025

The following interview features Anastasiia Levchuk, the 24-year-old widow of Hero of Ukraine Vladyslav Levchuk — a helicopter pilot-navigator killed while defending his country.  Ms. Levchuk shares her emotional account of their short marriage, her husband's dedication, and the profound grief caused by the war.

Thank you for accepting our interview request.

YUSUF INAN: Please provide information about yourself.

Nastya Levchuk: My name is Anastasiia Levchuk, I am only 24, and I am a widow...

YUSUF INAN: Tell us about your husband, Vladyslav Levchuk.

Nastya Levchuk: My husband, Vladyslav Levchuk, was a pilot-navigator in a helicopter unit. At the moment this cursed war began, he had just finished university and had only served in the unit for a month. But he went to fight without hesitation, to defend his family, his country, because these inhuman people are doing terrible things on our land. During this short time, he was on rotation 7 times and carried out countless combat sorties.

YUSUF INAN: When did your husband die?

Nastya Levchuk: One of those sorties became his last. On December 11, when his heart stopped beating, the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war ended for me; another one began—my internal war with myself, a daily war against the unwillingness to live without him, to move anywhere, or to do anything.

YUSUF INAN: How did you receive the news of your husband's death?

Nastya Levchuk: I remember little of that terrible day; everything is like a fog. A colleague of my husband called me and said the most terrible words of my life. In that moment, half of my soul died forever.

YUSUF INAN: What did you feel at that moment?

Nastya Levchuk: I felt devastation and terrible cold. It seemed as if the world would stop the next second, because it simply couldn't exist without my Vladik.

YUSUF INAN: How did you meet your husband?

Nastya Levchuk: My entire conscious life is connected to my husband. He was my first and only love. We were together for 6 years, and we met when I had just entered university. He was studying in another city. It was a love story that people write about in books. Our meetings were not as frequent as we would have liked, but they were so desired and passionate.

YUSUF INAN: When did you get married?

Nastya Levchuk: A few months before the start of the war, Vlad proposed to me, and we were incredibly happy, planning our wedding. But on February 24, Russia attacked Ukraine. He was away on assignments from the very first day, and I was going crazy with worry about him. Sometimes, I didn't even know in which corner of Ukraine he was, because such things could not be discussed over the phone—it was for his safety. Thoughts of the wedding faded into the background for a while, and then we made up our minds. The war showed all of us that we need to live and love today as if it were the last time. July 22 was the happiest day of my life. It was a small celebration with only the closest people, but it was so warm. We were happy because we were finally husband and wife.

YUSUF INAN: Did you create a petition to award your husband the title of Hero of Ukraine?

Nastya Levchuk: I have not created a petition yet. I communicate with women in the same situation as me. Unfortunately, in Ukraine, it is a long and complex procedure, and gathering the required number of votes does not guarantee the award of the title Hero of Ukraine. But I will do everything possible so that no one ever forgets about my husband. This is my mission in life—to preserve his memory.

YUSUF INAN: Where is your husband buried?

Nastya Levchuk: We buried Vlad in his native village next to his father. The grave is located 100 kilometers from my city, but I go there often, whenever I can.

YUSUF INAN: What are your thoughts as the wife of a Hero-pilot?

Nastya Levchuk: We were so happy; we had so many dreams and plans. This war destroyed my life, took away the most valuable thing, and nothing will ever be the same again. I try to keep living, but it feels mechanical, tasteless, and without enthusiasm.

YUSUF INAN: What was his rank?

Nastya Levchuk: Vlad was an officer. During his short career, he managed to receive the rank of Senior Lieutenant and the Order of Danylo Halytsky. Recently, I was presented with his rank of Captain (posthumously). And what frightens me the most is that addition in parentheses. It shouldn't have been like this...

YUSUF INAN: You recently got married; were you expecting a child?

Nastya Levchuk: This is another very painful topic for me. I would have liked to have a part of him, but we simply didn't have time... A few days before the tragedy, we talked on the phone about the future, about children, and Vlad said: "Nastyulya, winter will pass, and we will plan for a baby." And now winter has passed, and I am left alone... I often imagine what kind of father he would have been, but this is never destined to come true.

YUSUF INAN: What kind of person was Vladyslav Levchuk?

Nastya Levchuk: Vlad was born on January 7, 1999. In Ukraine, one of the biggest religious holidays is celebrated on this day. For some reason, the Lord brought him into the world on this special day, and this person was truly very special. Fair, honest, decent, brave, responsible, loving, caring, tender, but with a very strong core... the most worthy man I know.

[PHOTO: Vladyslav Levchuk was only 23 years old.]

YUSUF INAN: Do you keep in touch with your husband's friends?

Nastya Levchuk: Yes, we were surrounded by very sincere and sensitive people. They are all supporting me immensely now, and I appreciate it boundlessly.

YUSUF INAN: Your husband was a serviceman. Did he foresee that Russia would attack Ukraine?

Nastya Levchuk: I know that as servicemen, they were prepared for such a development of events, but still, until the very end, we didn't believe it; we hoped it wouldn't come to this. I remember when my husband called me at 4 a.m. on February 24 and said they were being called into work. I didn't know yet that the shelling of many Ukrainian cities had already begun, and I was sure it was a training alarm and everything would pass.

YUSUF INAN: Did he give you any instructions?

Nastya Levchuk: It's scary to imagine, but at the age of 23, he had conversations with me about the possibility of him not being around, and he gave me instructions on how to live without him. Vlad consciously understood what his profession was and how he risked his life every day. One of those messages was the last bouquet from my husband, which the courier brought to me on the day of his death, when Vlad was already on his final flight.... I didn't have the chance to thank him again. The thought that he sensed something and wanted to do something nice for "his Nastyulya" while he still had the chance, tears my soul apart. The note in the bouquet read: "Smile more often—you are so beautiful." Now I only live with the thought of how he would want to see me. And he sees, I am sure, he is always next to me. He comes in my dreams now and says that we still have an entire eternity ahead together. And I believe, because there is no other way...

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YUSUF İNAN / PEACE AT HOME, PEACE IN THE WORLD (*)

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(*)  As Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, once said, 'Peace at Home, Peace in the World.' This timeless principle serves as a guiding light for nations striving for harmony, coexistence, and global stability.