During the Battle of Kursk, the 8th Division provided air defense for the 1st Tank Army in the area north and west of Belgorod, while the 797th Regiment covered the 2nd Air Army's airfields in the area of Solntsevo and Trubezh. The division's anti-aircraft gunners claimed 80 enemy aircraft in the battle. During the Battle of the Dnieper, the division provided air defense for the 38th Army in the capture of left-bank Ukraine. It then fought in the Battle of Kiev, and for its "courage and valor", the 8th was awarded the honorific Kiev on 6 November. During January and February 1944, the division provided anti-aircraft cover to the 1st Tank Army during the Zhitomir–Berdichev Offensive, attacking towards Vinnytsia, and in battles to destroy encircled German troops in the Belaya Tserkov area. On 9 February, the division received the Order of the Red Banner for "successful completion of combat missions" and "displaying courage and valor".