Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
The Blue Star Salute Foundation partners with the Alabama Governor's Office to present the families a Governor's Certificate of Memory, a Commendation of Military Service, and an Alabama Flag which has been flown over the Capitol in honor of the Fallen.
On March 12, 2026, a U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker crashed in western Iraq during Operation Epic Fury, claiming the lives of three active-duty airmen of the 99th Air Refueling Squadron; Major Alex Klimmer, Major Ariana Savino, and Tech SGT Ashley Pruitt.
The 99th Air Refueling Squadron is located at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base in Birmingham, Alabama, sharing resources, space, manpower, and infrastructure with the Alabama National Guard's 117th Air Refueling Wing. Leaders said members of the 99th Air Refueling Squadron operate alongside the people of the 117th Air Refueling Wing and are "fully integrated" with its unit culture, but the active-duty squadron is administratively governed by the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. “Alex, Ashley, and Ariana are, and always will be members of the 117th family,” said Col. Mike Adams, 117th Air Refueling Wing commander. “Even though they were not members of the Air National Guard, to us they will always be remembered as Vulcan refuelers and Alabamians.”
On March 18, 2026, President Donald J. Trump and numerous other high government officials attended the dignified transfer of six American heroes at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and consoled the families of these heroes. Governor Kay Ivey presented the families with a Certificate of Memory, A Commendation of Military Service, and an Alabama Flag flown over the State Capitol in their honor.