Born on March 25, 1976 in the city of Rubizhne, Luhansk region. Since 1978, he lived in the village of Borova, Kharkiv region, where he graduated from secondary school No. 1. He played sports. For a while, he lived in the village of Peremoha, Glukhiv district, Sumy region.
In June 1994, he was called up for military service in the ranks of the National Guard of Ukraine in Lviv, and the following year he entered the Military Institute of the National Guard of Ukraine in Kharkiv. After completing his studies, he was sent for further service as a platoon commander to military unit A0501, Klugyno-Bashkyrivka, Kharkiv region. Later, he was appointed commander of a reconnaissance platoon of a mechanized battalion. Since 2011, he has been the deputy chief of staff of the 92nd separate mechanized brigade.
Marital status:
Wife: KOVBASA Svitlana Viktorivna, born in 1979, lives in the city of Chuguiv.
Daughter: KOVBASA Valeria Olegovna, born in 2005, lives in the city of Chuguiv.
Son: KOVBASA Yevgeny Olegovich, born in 2002, lives in the city of Chuguiv
Recently, he served as deputy chief of staff of the 92nd separate mechanized brigade and lived with his family in the city of Chuguiv. According to the recollections of his comrades: "He could have worked in the headquarters, but he preferred the battle on the front line." For the last month, Major Oleg Kovbasa led the defense of a strategically important facility - a bridge near the city of Shchastya. He organized the defense in such a way that none of his subordinates died.
Circumstances of death: He died on April 5, 2015, during shelling by militants from the direction of a sand quarry from an anti-tank guided complex of a platoon stronghold on a bridge near the town of Shchastya near Luhansk. As a result of a missile hitting a mine barrier, an explosion occurred. The TM-62 mines detonated. Senior Private O. Fedorchenko, Senior Sergeant V. Blinov, and Private S. Gurov died together with Oleg.
Burial place: Borova village, Borivskyi district, Kharkiv region. Farewell to Oleg Kovbasa took place in the lobby of the Borivskyi district House of Culture, accompanied by a guard of honor. The memorial service was led by the rector of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Archpriest John. A military salute was fired in honor of the hero.
His portrait is placed on the memorial "Wall of Memory of Those Who Fell for Ukraine" in Kyiv: section 6, row 10, seat 37.
By decision of the Peremozka Village Council, Pershotravneva Street in the village of Peremozka, Glukhiv District, was renamed Oleg Kovbasy Street.
On October 14, 2015, in the village of Borova, a memorial plaque was installed in his honor on the wall of the house at 3 Myru Lane, where Oleg Kovbasa lived. In the town of Shchastya, at the «Fasad» stronghold, soldiers of the 92nd Brigade installed a memorial plaque as a sign of respect for their fallen comrades.
By Decree of the President of Ukraine No. 311/2015 of June 4, 2015, "for personal courage and high professionalism shown in protecting the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, loyalty to the military oath" he was awarded the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, III degree (posthumously). He was awarded the medals "For Conscientious Service" of the II and III degrees.
