Ready to any trials made her character, and sports. Nina voluntarily joined the 4th Division militia of Leningrad, then served in the medical battalion. Since November 1941, in the ranks of the army, the Nazis destroyed the well-aimed fire, repeatedly defeated in duels with enemy snipers. Day after day went out to battle position, the entire siege bravely defended his native city, for which he was awarded medals "For Military Merit" and "For Defense of Leningrad ', as well as the Order of the Patriotic War, 2 nd degree. 'Mama Nina' – so named on the front of the soldiers warmly sniper Nina Pavlovna Petrov. She was older than most of them beardless boys, her sons godivshihsya.

Petrov was in the infantry combat formations units in the village Zarudin Leningrad region. Nina Pavlovna took a comfortable position and hid. Light. The enemy was cautious. Comfortable situation for the shooting was not long, though both sides occurred periodically firing. About 9 o'clock in the morning of machine-gun and machine-gun fire rang out dry rifle shot. The scouts who watched the enemy positions, saw the Nazi signalman, correcting phone line, fell to the ground face down.

His well-aimed bullet struck Nina Pavlovna. A few minutes later, the same fate befell the second Nazis, who crawled out of the bunker in order to inquire the fate of the telephone operator. He came to the attention of a sniper for a few seconds. But this was not enough for best shot. Sniper noticed. Machine gun fire hit a parapet of the trench, where the Nina Pavlovna, but did not cause harm.