By Aleena Fayaz, CNN
(CNN) — The Pentagon on Saturday identified the six airmen killed in an aircraft crash in western Iraq on Thursday.
The airmen are 33-year-old Maj. John A. Klinner of Auburn, Alabama; 31-year-old Capt. Ariana G. Savino of Covington, Washington; 34-year-old Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt of Bardstown, Kentucky; 38-year-old Capt. Seth R. Koval of Mooresville, Indiana; 30-year-old Capt. Curtis J. Angst of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
Klinner, Savino and Pruitt were assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. Koval, Angst and Simmons were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus.
The crew members were aboard a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft when it crashed in western Iraq on Thursday, the US military said, adding that the incident was “not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.”
The Pentagon said Saturday the incident is still under investigation.
A previous statement said that two aircraft were involved in an incident over western Iraq while operating during Operation Epic Fury, the name the Pentagon has given for the war with Iran. The statement said the second aircraft landed safely.
The KC-135 allows aircraft to refuel in the sky to remain in a battle zone for longer. The jets can also be configured to carry cargo and medical patients. The Air Force did not say what mission the jets involved in Thursday’s incident were performing.
The crew members’ deaths bring the number of US troops killed in connection to the war with Iran to 13.
Six US Army Reserve soldiers were killed in an attack on Kuwait’s Shuaiba port on March 1. Another service member died last week after sustaining injuries during an attack in Saudi Arabia earlier this month.
This story has been updated with additional details.
The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
CNN’s Haley Britzky and Brad Lendon contributed to this report.
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