The 174th Rifle Division fought as part of the 22nd Army in the Polotsk defensive operation, where it escaped encirclement.

The 20th Guards Rifle Division fought at the Battle of Stalingrad, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, Budapest, and Vienna.

In accordance with Decree 925/98, of 23 August 1998, division commander Serhiy Andriyovych Harbuz was promoted to Major General.

It refers to the way that the airport defenders were able to fend off constant attacks by DPR forces in close quarters with little sleep or support, just as science-fiction cyborgs are "indestructible half-men, half-machines", or "superhuman".

[citation needed] During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the brigade participated in the battle of Kharkiv.

On the night of the invasion, part of the brigade was stationed in Luhansk Oblast and one tank battalion in Mariupol.

From the 8th to the 11th May 2022, in the battle of the Siverskyi Donets, the artillery from the 17th Tank Brigade destroyed a Russian battalion tactical group.