In October 1941 she joined the Soviet military and participated in battles on the Eastern Front starting in May 1942 after graduating from her military navigation courses. She initially served as a navigator but went on to become a pilot, after which she was promoted to the position of flight commander. Her regiment was officially designated the 588th Night Bomber Regiment until it was renamed in 1943 to the 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment. During the war she participated in bombing campaigns on the Southern, Caucasian, and Belorussian fronts as well as in Berlin, Crimea, Kerch, Kolberg, Kuban, Mlavsko-Elbing, Mogilev, and Osowiec. In addition to bombing enemy targets she flew missions to resupply the Red Army. By November 1944 she had dropped 89 tons of bombs on targets, destroyed three crossing points, a searchlight, three artillery batteries, and started 177 fires. Upon the end of the war she flew 968 missions, during which she had encountered many close-calls with death. For completing her first 773 sorties she was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 23 February 1945.