Ukrainian women on the front line begin testing Canada-designed curved body armour

Ukrainian parliamentarian Iryna Nykorak highlighted that most of the country’s 10,000+ combat women have been forced to wear bulky men’s ballistic plates, which many abandon because they do not fit. To address this, Ukraine began distributing its first female-specific vests last month and, in June, the United Kingdom contributed 2,000 armour sets featuring curved plates produced by NP Aerospace in Coventry and vest carriers from Logistik Unicorp.

A seasoned National Guard officer, identified only by the call sign Kudriava, recounted the challenges of operating in front-line roles while wearing ill-fitted gear. Engineers from NP Aerospace and sales manager Erin Grieve explained that the curved plates conform to women’s anatomy, reducing gaps and increasing protection by roughly 48 percent against bullets, shrapnel and drone strikes. Nykorak’s NGO, Arm Women Now, has already supplied 350 lightweight female plates and continues to lobby for more gender-appropriate uniforms. Officials hope the successful field testing will encourage other allies, such as the EU, Canada and the UK, to adopt similar equipment for their servicewomen.