The soldier's real name is Vadym Voroshylov. The man is from the city of Kremenchuk, Poltava region. He graduated from the Kremenchuk Military Lyceum in 2011. He has the rank of major and uses the call sign "Karaya". 

"Dear friends, I want to express my gratitude for the support of everyone who sends me messages, but I cannot physically respond to everyone, so thank you. I am grateful to the professionalism of the medical staff who immediately provided assistance and restored me in a short time. I saw that information is spreading on the Internet that Vinnytsia residents want to organise a collection for a new plane for me. Our Ukraine and the glorious Ukrainians will never be defeated or broken. It is in such a fight that national unity is manifested and a nation is formed. My morale is high, so I will say one thing - let's keep working. Glory to Ukraine," Vadym wrote. 

In 2021, the pilot gave an interview in which he spoke about his dismissal from the army due to bureaucracy. It revealed more about Karaya's biography: 

In 2015, he received a bachelor's degree with honours in Military Administration (Air Force).

In 2016, he received a Master's degree with honours in Aviation Operations Management.

After graduation, he was assigned to the military unit A0959, where he served until 29 June 2021 in various positions:

2016-2018 - pilot of the aviation unit of the aviation squadron;
2018-2020 - senior pilot of the aviation unit of the aviation squadron;
2020-2021 - Head of the Flight Safety Service of the services of the military unit A0959.
In 2017, he was named the best young pilot of the South Air Command.

In 2020, following the results of flight competitions, he became the "Best Fighter Crew of the Air Force of Ukraine".

Over the ten years of his military service, he has completed 1032 flights, including 14 combat missions. He was qualified as a 2nd class pilot. He took part in combat operations in eastern Ukraine.