To honor the men and women in our armed forces and remind our readers of their sacrifices, Northwest Arkansas Newspapers is publishing Department of Defense announcements identifying Americans killed in active military operations.
Three soldiers supporting Operation Enduring Freedom died April 6 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked their unit in Zabul,Afghanistan with a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device. Killed were Army Staff Sgt. Christopher M. Ward, 24, of Oak Ridge, Tenn.; Spc. Wilbel A. Robles-Santa, 25, of Juncos, Puerto Rico; and Spc. Delfin M. Santos Jr., 24, of San Jose, Calif. They were assigned to the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.
Army Chief Warrant Officers Matthew P. Ruffner, 34, of Tafford, Pa., and Jarett M. Yoder, 26, of Mohnton, Pa., died April 9 in Pachir Wa Agam District, Nangarhar province, Afghanistan. They were assigned to the1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 104th Aviation Regiment, 28th Combat Aviation Brigade, 28th Infantry Division, Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa.
Army Pfc. Barrett L. Austin, 20, of Easley, S.C., died April 21 in Landstuhl, Germany, of injuries suffered when his vehicle was attacked by an enemy improvised explosive device in Wardak Province, Afghanistan, April 17. He was assigned to the 4th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.
Army Capt. Aaron R. Blanchard, 32, of Selah, Wash., and 1st Lt. Robert J. Hess, 26, of Fairfax, Va., died April 23 in Pul-E-Alam, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered from enemy indirect fire. The soldiers were assigned to the 2nd Aviation Battalion, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.
Four Air Force airmen died April 27 near Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, in the crash of an MC-12 aircraft. The cause of the crash is under investigation, however initial reporting indicates there was no enemy activity in the area at the time of the crash. Killed were: Capt. Brandon L. Cyr, 28, of Woodbridge, Va. He was assigned to the 906th Air Refueling Squadron, Scott Air Force Base, Ill. Capt. Reid K. Nishizuka, 30, of Kailua, Hawaii. He was assigned to the 427th Reconnaissance Squadron, Beale Air Force Base, Calif. Staff Sgt. Richard A. Dickson, 24, of Rancho Cordova, Calif. He was assigned to the 306th Intelligence Squadron, Beale Air Force Base, Calif. Staff Sgt. Daniel N. Fannin, 30, of Morehead, Ky. He was assigned to the 552nd Operations Support Squadron, Tinker Air Force Base, Okla.
Army Staff Sgt. Michael H. Simpson, 30, of San Antonio, Texas, died May 1 in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit on April 27, with an improvised explosive device in Arian, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
Army Spc. Trinidad Santiago Jr., 25, of San Diego, Calif., and Pfc. Charles P. McClure, 21, of Stratford, Okla., died May 2 in Camp Buehring, Kuwait, of injuries suffered in a vehicle accident. They were assigned to 4th Battalion, 42nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.
Three Air Force airmen died May 3, near Chon-Aryk, Kyrgyzstan, in the crash of a KC-135 aircraft. The airmen were assigned to the 93rd Air Refueling Squadron, Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. The three were Capt. Mark T. Voss, 27, of Colorado Springs, Colo.; Capt. Victoria A. Pinckney, 27, of Palmdale, Calif.; and Tech Sgt. Herman Mackey III, 30, of Bakersfi eld, Calif.
Marine Staff Sgt. Eric D. Christian, 39, of Warwick, N.Y., and Cpl. David M. Sonka, 23, of Parker, Colo., died while conducting combat operations in Farah province, Afghanistan. They were both assigned to 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Five soldiers died May 4, in Maiwand, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered when their vehicle was attacked by an enemy improvised explosive device. The soldiers were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss, Texas.
They included 1st Lt. Brandon J. Landrum, 26, of Lawton, Okla.; Staff Sgt. Francis G. Phillips IV, 28, of Meridian, N.Y.;
Spc. Kevin Cardoza, 19, of Mercedes, Texas; Spc. Thomas P. Murach, 22, of Meridian, Idaho; and Spc. Brandon J.
Prescott, 24, of Bend, Ore.
Opinion, Pages 5 on 05/13/2013