Escape from Tarkov: Missing in Action Quest Walkthrough

Happy holidays! In the cheery snowscape of Tarkov, 'happy' means you're alive. That's as good as it gets around here.

Missing in Action is the first quest of the 2026 festive event in Escape From Tarkov. The quest is given to you by Prapor.

A squad of his men has gone out on some important long-range mission to retrieve cargo from the field, but they have yet to return.

With the intense blizzard going on, the missing squad will need some extra help to get back home, and that's where you come in.

The job is simple enough: drop three care packages (consisting of a bottle of vodka, a pack of buckwheat, and an Iskra field ration) in separate locations in the Woods, Reserve, and Interchange maps.

Where to Find the Items

Prapor will provide you with three full sets of the required items, but you will need to source them yourself if you lose any of them.

As the items required for the Missing in Action quest do not need to be found in raid, you can purchase them from the Flea Market or from Fence if available. All three are commonly found in Ration Crates across all maps. The pack of Arseniy buckwheat cannot be crafted.

Hideout Crafting

You can craft the bottle of Tarkovskaya vodka in the level 3 Nutrition Unit. The craft requires five bottles of water and one bottle of Fierce Hatchling moonshine.

The Iskra ration pack can be crafted in the level 1 Nutrition Unit. This requires two packs of Army crackers, a small can of beef stew, and a can of squash spread. Alternatively, you can buy it from Jaeger at loyalty level 2 after completing The Survival Path - Thrifty quest.

Where to Stash the Items for Missing in Action

The stashing process takes five seconds per item. Put as many of the items as you can fit into your secure container to avoid having to craft or purchase them at a premium later.

Although it is possible to complete the quest in a single raid using transits between the three maps, this is not required, and you will most likely end up dead with broken bottles of vodka in your backpack.

Woods

The stashing location for Missing in Action in the Woods map is the Scav House, located right by the Outskirts extract and the transit point to Reserve.

Approach the two boxes in the corner to trigger the prompt and place the items.

Reserve

The dropoff point in the Reserve map is in the westernmost guard barracks building. It is located in the northwestern corner of the map, to the north of the train station. The building of interest is marked with a "B" on the outside.

After entering the barracks, look for the small room to your right-hand side. The stashing point is the pair of desks on the floor by the Air Force posters.

Interchange

The Interchange stash for Missing in Action is located in the expanded part of the map introduced with the 1.0 update. It is adjacent to the Path to River flare extract, located in the new Smuggler's Camp.

Look for the small metal shack near the generator and the yellow van marked with the red star graffiti, and place the items on the right side of it.

Missing in Action Quest Rewards

The Missing in Action quest is completed once you finish placing the last item. The order in which you do so does not matter, so you do not need to extract from the raid or stay alive between attempts.

The quest rewards are 5000 XP points and 0.01 rep with Prapor, 21000 roubles, a modified AK-12 assault rifle with three old pattern magazines, and a box with 120 7N40 rounds for your new gun.

This also unlocks the Clearing the Way quest, which you start by taking to Skier.