The Department of Defense released the names of the six airmen who died when their LC-135 Refueling plane crashed in western Iraq on Thursday.
They are: Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington.; and Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky, who were all assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing. 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 were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing.
The 6th Air Refueling Wing is based out of MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. The 121st Air Refueling Wing, an Ohio Air National Guard unit, is based at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Ohio.
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The KC-135 went down while flying over friendly airspace on Thursday, according to U.S. Central Command. Despite rescue efforts, all six onboard were confirmed dead. The tanker was participating in Operation Epic Fury — the military’s name for the war with Iran that started on Feb. 28 — and two aircraft were involved in the incident, according to CENTCOM.
The Air Force is currently investigating the incident and the identification announcement did not offer any updates or additional details on what happened. US Central Command previously said that the incident “was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.” The second aircraft, identified by the Associated Press as another KC-135, landed safely, according to CENTCOM.
Klinner and Simmons’ names were shared by family members prior to the announcement, with local media covering their deaths and the 121st Air Refueling Wing confirmed that three members who died in the crash were assigned to the unit.
A total of 13 American service members have been killed while participating in Operation Epic Fury. Six were killed after an Iranian drone struck a building in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, while another died from injuries sustained after Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia was hit. Those attacks all occurred in the first 48 hours of the war.
The refueling plane is the fourth U.S. aircraft confirmed lost since the start of the war. Three F-15s were shot down over Kuwait in a friendly fire incident by a Kuwaiti Air Force F-18; all crew were recovered.
