Kamal Ghorui
An aviation enthusiast paid a moving tribute to three members of the Ohio Air National Guard, days after they were among six service personnel killed in a refueling tanker crash in western Iraq.Flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 shows a pilot creating a symbolic tribute in the sky on March 19, tracing the outline of a service member alongside three headstones to honor the fallen Ohio guardsmen.Captain Seth Koval, Captain Curtis Angst, and Master Sergeant Tyler Simmons were part of the US government’s “Operation Epic Fury” on March 12 when a KC-135 aircraft went down around 2 pm, according to US Central Command. The military said the aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace, and the cause of the crash remains under investigation.Also killed in the incident were Major John Alex Klinner of Auburn, Alabama; Captain Ariana G. Savino of Covington, Washington; and Technical Sergeant Ashley B. Pruitt of Bardstown, Kentucky. The Ohio National Guard and the 121st Air Refueling Wing later honored Koval, Angst, and Simmons, BBC News reported.In just 21 days of conflict, at least 16 military aircraft—12 drones and four planes, including THAAD radar systems, an F-35 stealth fighter jet, and even the USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier, though not all incidents were caused directly by enemy fire.In early March, three F-15 fighter jets were shot down in “an apparent friendly fire incident” over Kuwait, officials said. All six crew members were able to safely eject. Boeing manufactured the KC-135 Stratotanker for the US military in the 1950s and early 1960s.It has been a backbone to the US military’s air refuelling fleet, and allows combat aircraft to carry out longer missions without needing to land.
