In Kharkiv, authorities will rename two streets to honor the memory of fallen pilots Oleksii Mesia and Maksym Ustymenko.

The city's mayor, Ihor Terekhov, announced this on his Telegram channel.

"Both pilots began their military careers in Kharkiv, where they received their training and developed into skilled officers. Their names will forever remain in the history of our city", – the message states.

Oleksii Mesia died on August 26, 2024, while defending against a Russian attack, managing to destroy three missiles and one drone.

"Oleksii saved many Ukrainians from deadly Russian missiles, though he paid for it with his own life", – noted the Air Command "West" of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Pilot F-16 Maksym Ustymenko was killed during a large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine on June 29, 2025, leaving behind a 4-year-old son.

"He engaged all of his onboard weapons and shot down seven aerial targets, but his aircraft sustained damage, and he couldn't eject in time", – reported the Air Forces.

Maksym trained alongside his comrade Andrii Pilshchykov, who was killed in the summer of 2023.