--- title: "‘This is a tragedy for our entire team’ — Alaska airman killed in armed confrontation with police" description: "An Alaska-based airman died on Thursday after local police shot him for brandishing a shotgun in front of them. The airman, 26-year-old Tech Sgt. Gage Southard, was assigned to 673rd Communications Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson." date: "2020-01-24" modified: "2020-01-24" authors: - name: "David Roza" job_title: "YouTube Writer/Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/david-roza/" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/alaska-airman-killed-by-police/" categories: - "Air Force" - "Around the World" - "Military Branches" - "News" - "United States" tags: - "justice" --- # ‘This is a tragedy for our entire team’ — Alaska airman killed in armed confrontation with police ![]() An Alaska-based airman died on Thursday after local police shot him for brandishing a shotgun in front of them. The airman, 26-year-old Tech Sgt. Gage Southard, was assigned to 673rd Communications Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, base officials said in a statement sent to Task & Purpose. "The loss of Tech. Sgt. Southard is devastating," said Col. Patricia Csànk, Joint Base Commander. "My deepest condolences and prayers are with Tech. Sgt. Southard's wife and family, and his fellow Airmen. This is a tragedy for our entire team." According to a [dispatch]() from the Alaska State Police, state troopers responded to a domestic disturbance report at a house in Palmer, Alaska at about 2:30 a.m. on Thursday. When troopers got there, a woman with what appeared to be non-life threatening injuries and two children left the house, the dispatch said. The woman told police that Southard was in the garage armed with a shotgun. Soon after that, Southard drove out of the garage and out of the neighborhood in a Dodge Journey SUV, the dispatch said. Police officers from Wasilla attempted to stop Southard on the Palmer Wasilla Highway, but he drove into a ditch and soon got out of the SUV "brandishing a shotgun," the dispatch said. Police shot Southard at around 2:50 a.m., according to the dispatch. Despite efforts by first responders to save him, Southard died shortly afterwards at a local hospital. The incident is under investigation by the Alaska State Troopers' General Investigative Unit. Southard's neighbor said the airman was a very polite man, according to the local news station, [KTUU](). "It doesn't make any sense," the anonymous neighbor was reported as saying. "He was always very aware and respectful to his neighbors. He was a gentleman." ## Author David Roza writes scripts about military news for the Task & Purpose YouTube channel, and he also writes articles about military pay, benefits, health care, child care, culture, and other personnel topics on a freelance basis. Roza previously covered the Air Force and Space Force for Task & Purpose from 2019 to 2023 and for Air & Space Forces Magazine from 2023 to 2025. In the course of that reporting, he has set off a ‘Hollywood explosion’ with Air Force bomb techs, turned the (unarmed) keys of a nuclear missile bunker, hovered over the Nevada desert on an Air Force rescue helicopter, and got the best sleep of his life on the floor of a C-17 over the central Pacific. Share tips and story ideas with David at [david.roza@teamrecurrent.io]()