‘Devoted’ Father of 3 Was Deployed Less Than a Week Before Fatal Plane Crash that Killed 6 U.S. Service Members in Iraq
Airfind news item
By Rachel Mcrady
Published on March 16, 2026.
Six U.S. service members were killed in a military refueling aircraft crash in Iraq on March 12. The plane went down in western Iraq and is currently being investigated by U.N. Central Command. The dead were identified as Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt from Bardstown, Ky., Maj. John A. "Alex" Klinner from Birmingham, Ala., Capt. Ariana G. Savino from Covington, Wash, Capt. Seth R. Koval from Moorseville, Ind., and Tech. Tyler Simmons, 28, from Columbus, Ohio, were also remembered as a light. Three of the deceased service members from the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, were stationed at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base in Birmingham, Alabama.
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