The Pentagon has identified six U.S. service members who were killed when a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in during a combat mission in support of .
The incident, which occurred on Thursday, took place in “friendly” airspace during an unspecified incident involving another aircraft. While the other plane landed safely, the KC-135 crashed. Military officials said the incident was not due to hostile or friendly fire and remains under investigation.
The airmen were assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Base in Florida and the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in , according to U.S. government and state officials.
Those killed were Maj. John “Alex” Klinner, 33; Capt. Ariana Savino, 31; Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, 34; Capt. Seth Koval, 38; Capt. Curtis Angst, 30; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler Simmons, 28.Â
Maj. John “Alex” Klinner, 33, leaves behind three small children â 7-month-old twins and a 2-year-old son, his brother-in-law, James Harrill, confirmed.
A graduate of Auburn University and an eight-year U.S. Air Force veteran from Birmingham, Alabama, Klinner had recently moved with his family into a new home, according to his wife, Libby Klinner.
“It’s kind of heartbreaking to say: He was just a really good dad and really loved his family a lot â like a lot,” Harrill said.
An outdoorsman who enjoyed hiking, Klinner was also known for helping others. Harrill recalled that when he last saw him in January during a family wedding, Klinner helped shovel Harrills vehicle out of the snow.
“Alex was one of those guys that had this steady command about him,” Harrill said. “He was literally one of the most kind, giving people.”
Libby Klinner said her heart is broken for their children, who will grow up not knowing their father.
“They won’t get to see firsthand the way he would jump up to help in any way he could,” she wrote in a post. “They won’t see how goofy and funny he was. They won’t witness his selflessness, the way he thought about everyone else before himself. They won’t get to feel the deep love he had for them.”
Klinner was assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida, though Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said he was stationed in Birmingham.
Capt. Ariana Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington, was also assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base.
Savino was among the crew members aboard the KC-135 refueling aircraft when it crashed in western Iraq.
Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, 34, of , was the third member of the MacDill-based crew killed in the crash.
Pruitt served with the 6th Air Refueling Wing and was deployed as part of the mission when the aircraft went down.
Capt. Seth Koval, 38, served as a KC-135R Stratotanker Instructor Pilot with the 166th Air Refueling Squadron at the 121st Air Refueling Wing in Columbus, Ohio.
The Ohio National Guard said Koval was an aircraft commander with 19 years of service. While the Ohio National Guard listed his home in Stoutsville, Ohio, the U.S. government listed his hometown as .
A graduate of Purdue University, Koval first enlisted in 2006 as a machinist with the Indiana National Guards 122nd Fighter Wing before transferring to the Ohio Air National Guard in 2017. He earned his commission in 2018 and completed instructor pilot upgrade in 2024. Over the course of his career, Koval logged 2,076 total flight hours, including 443 combat hours.
Capt. Curtis Angst, 30, served as a KC-135R pilot with the 166th Air Refueling Squadron at the 121st Air Refueling Wing in Columbus, Ohio.
While the Ohio National Guard listed his home as Columbus, the U.S. government listed his hometown as Wilmington, Ohio. A graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a degree in aerospace engineering, Angst initially enlisted in the Ohio Air National Guard in 2015 as a vehicle maintenance technician with the 123rd Air
