The KC-135 refueling aircraft was lost in an apparent midair accident with another tanker over friendly airspace in Iraq while supporting Iran war operations.
Technical Sergeant Ashley B. Pruitt, Captain Ariana G. Savino, U.S. Air Force Capt. Alex Klinner, Capt. Seth Koval, Capt. Curtis Angst and U.S. Air National Guard, U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Tyler Simmons. (Reuters ;AP ; Ohio National Guard)
The service members who were killed are Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington; Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky; Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
In a statement posted on Facebook and carried by local media, Koval’s family said: “Our world was shattered two days ago. There is nothing that can prepare you to receive news that you’ve lost the love of your life. Our family will never be the same.”
“He was proud to put his uniform on and serve others. He grew up dreaming about becoming a pilot and to stand beside him as he made his dreams come true was an honor,” the statement read.
Klinner was a father to three young children, wrote Ben Short, mayor of Trussville, Alabama, where Klinner had just moved with his family. “His commitment to protecting others and serving something greater than himself represents the very best of our nation,” Short said.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) offered condolences to the service members, paying special tribute to Pruitt. “They are heroes who sacrificed everything serving our country,” he wrote.
U.S. Central Command said the aircraft was lost when flying over friendly airspace as part of Operation Epic Fury. It said the crash was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire. It is investigating the incident.
The aircraft involved in the apparent accident were KC-135 Stratotankers, a type of refueling aircraft often used as air support when fighters are tasked with conducting strikes.
Aerial refueling is a complex but critical military mission. During a refueling mission, tanker pilots maintain the refueler in steady flight, holding a close distance as the plane’s operator controls the boom with a joystick, slowly lowering it toward an approaching plane. It is a difficult and inherently dangerous operation.
“Please keep these brave airmen, their families, friends and units in your thoughts in the coming hours and days,” Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said in prepared remarks at a briefing Friday. “Those are very, very, very tough days when that knock comes on the door.”
“War is hell,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at the briefing. “War is chaos. And as we saw yesterday with the tragic crash of our KC-135 tanker, bad things can happen.” He called the service members “American heroes.”
Seven American service members have died as a result of hostile fire since the Iran war began last month — six in an attack at a port in Kuwait, another wounded in an attack in Saudi Arabia.
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