{"id":665503,"date":"2026-03-18T23:21:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T23:21:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/665503\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T23:21:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T23:21:24","slug":"trump-attends-second-dignified-transfer-in-3-weeks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/665503\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump attends second dignified transfer in 3 weeks"},"content":{"rendered":"

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump<\/a> paid his respects on Wednesday at a Delaware military base where the remains of six U.S. service members killed in the crash of a refueling aircraft<\/a> were returned to their families.<\/p>\n

It was the second time<\/a> since launching the war with Iran<\/a> on Feb. 28 that the Republican president attended the solemn military ritual known as a dignified transfer,<\/a> which he once described as the \u201ctoughest thing\u201d he has had to do as commander in chief.<\/p>\n

Accompanying Trump were Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and lawmakers including Sens. Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt, both Alabama Republicans. <\/p>\n

All six crew members<\/a> of a KC-135 Air Force refueling aircraft were killed last week in a plane crash over friendly territory in western Iraq while supporting operations against Iran. They were from Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Washington state. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n AP AUDIO: Trump will pay his respects in Delaware to 6 US service members killed in the Middle East\n <\/p>\n

AP Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports President Trump will pay his respects to six U.S. troops killed in the Middle East.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery person on that aircraft carried a weight most Americans will never see, and they carried it with professionalism, courage, and a level of quiet excellence that deserves to be recognized,\u201d retired Lt. Col Ernesto Nisperos, a friend of one of those killed, said in a text message Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The crash brought the U.S. death toll in Operation Epic Fury to at least 13 service members. About 200 U.S. service members have been injured, including 10 severely, the Pentagon has said. <\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s dignified transfer was closed to news media coverage at the request of the families in accordance with military policy<\/a>. Trump spent just under two hours on the ground and didn\u2019t speak to reporters leaving Air Force One or returning to it. <\/p>\n

Trump last traveled to Dover Air Force Base on March 7 for the dignified transfer of six U.S. service members<\/a> who were killed by a drone strike at a command center in Kuwait. He saluted as flag-draped transfer cases containing the remains of the fallen service members were carried from military aircraft to vehicles waiting to take them to the base\u2019s mortuary facility to prepare them for their final resting place.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"President<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump salutes as an Army carry team moves a flag-draped transfer case with the remains of Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa, who was killed in a drone strike at a command center in Kuwait after the U.S. and Israel launched its military campaign against Iran, during a casualty return, March 7, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Del. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump salutes as an Army carry team moves a flag-draped transfer case with the remains of Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa, who was killed in a drone strike at a command center in Kuwait after the U.S. and Israel launched its military campaign against Iran, during a casualty return, March 7, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Del. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)<\/p>\n

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Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s the bad part of war,\u201d he told reporters afterward. Asked then if he worried about having to make multiple trips to the base for additional dignified transfers as the war continued, he said, \u201cI\u2019m sure. I hate to do it, but it\u2019s a part of war, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, said that the crash followed an unspecified incident involving two aircraft in \u201cfriendly airspace\u201d over Iraq but that the loss of the aircraft during a combat mission was \u201cnot due to hostile or friendly fire.\u201d The circumstances were under investigation. The other plane landed safely.<\/p>\n

The crash killed three people<\/a> assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida: Maj. John A. \u201cAlex\u201d Klinner, 33, who served in Birmingham, Alabama; Capt. Ariana Linse Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington; and Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky.<\/p>\n

Klinner, who left behind a wife, a 2-year-old son and 7-month-old twins, was known for his steady command and goofy nature, as well as a willingness to help others. Pruitt\u2019s husband described her as a \u201cradiant\u201d woman who lit up the room. Savino was a friend, mentee and \u201csource of positive energy\u201d who was proud of her Puerto Rican heritage and inspired young Latinas, said Nisperos, who is serving as spokesman for her family.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe had had this warmth that made you feel seen, a strength that showed up in everything she touched, and a spark \u2014 that spice \u2014 that made her unforgettable,\u201d Nisperos said. \u201cIf you knew her, even for a moment, you knew you were in the presence of someone who was going to change the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

The three others<\/a> were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus, Ohio: Capt. Seth Koval, 38, a resident of Stoutsville, Ohio, who was from Mooresville, Indiana; Capt. Curtis Angst, 30, who lived in Columbus; and Master Sgt. Tyler Simmons, 28, of Columbus.<\/p>\n

Koval grew up dreaming of becoming a pilot, according to his wife, who described him as a loving, generous \u201cfixer of all things.\u201d Angst\u2019s family said his life was defined by service, generosity and \u201ca genuine love for people.\u201d Simmons loved confiding in his 85-year-old grandmother and working out with her, Sen. Jon Husted said Tuesday, when he and Sen. Bernie Moreno honored the Ohio airmen on the Senate floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo the mom and dad of these three young soldiers, I can\u2019t even process what you\u2019re going through. I can\u2019t even imagine the emotions that you\u2019re feeling,\u201d Moreno said. \u201cJust know that America is grateful beyond words for the sacrifice that your heroic young sons made.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Associated Press writers Holly Ramer in Concord, N.H., and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump paid his respects on Wednesday at a Delaware…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":665504,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[97,272269,281528,281527,170326,281530,170927,12785,905,84,69,281532,6064,723,57,6323,2862,83,6087,281529,262436,173764,357,28022,564,8006,3097,8119,8132,50,1574,1573,6986,518,281531,17113,61,67,132,68,2057,96,2058,93,107],"class_list":["post-665503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-states","category-us","tag-2024-2025-mideast-wars","tag-2024-2026-mideast-wars","tag-ariana-linse-savino","tag-ashley-pruitt","tag-bernie-moreno","tag-curtis-angst","tag-dan-caine","tag-dc-wire","tag-delaware","tag-district-of-columbia","tag-donald-trump","tag-ernesto-nisperos","tag-fl-state-wire","tag-florida","tag-general-news","tag-in-state-wire","tag-indiana","tag-iran","tag-iran-war","tag-john-a","tag-jon-husted","tag-katie-britt","tag-kentucky","tag-ky-state-wire","tag-maryland","tag-md-state-wire","tag-middle-east","tag-mike-johnson","tag-military-and-defense","tag-news","tag-oh-state-wire","tag-ohio","tag-pete-hegseth","tag-plane-crashes","tag-seth-koval","tag-tommy-tuberville","tag-u-s-news","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us","tag-wa-state-wire","tag-war-and-unrest","tag-washington","tag-washington-news","tag-world-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=665503"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665503\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/665504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=665503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=665503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=665503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}