Dover Air Force Base receives fallen soldiers
Five died in helicopter crash in Mediterranean Sea
DOVER — The remains of service members reportedly killed in a helicopter crash over the eastern Mediterranean Sea during training Friday have been brought home.
About 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, Dover Air Force Base Mortuary Affairs Operations conducted a dignified transfer of the remains back to U.S. soil.
On Monday, the Department of Defense announced that the five U.S. Army Special Operations aviation soldiers were killed during helicopter training.
There are no indications the incident was caused by hostile actions, defense officials said in a statement.
They went on to say that the MH-60 Blackhawk was conducting aerial refueling training when it experienced an in-flight emergency, resulting in the crash.
The deceased are:
- Chief Warrant Officer 3 Stephen R. Dwyer, 38, of Clarksville, Tennessee.
- Chief Warrant Officer 2 Shane M. Barnes, 34, of Sacramento, California.
- Staff Sgt. Tanner W. Grone, 26, of Gorham, New Hampshire.
- Sgt. Andrew P. Southard, 27, of Apache Junction, Arizona.
- Sgt. Cade M. Wolfe, 24, of Mankato, Minnesota.
“Our thoughts and prayers remain with the families of the fallen. The U.S. Army’s Combat Readiness Center is conducting an investigation into the incident,” U.S. Army Special Operations Command leaders said in a press release Monday.
Further, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that “we mourn the tragic loss of five U.S. service members during a training accident in the Mediterranean Sea.”
“While we continue to gather more information about this deadly crash, it is another stark reminder that the brave men and women who defend our great nation put their lives on the line each and every day to keep our country safe.”
Though five soldiers died in the incident, Dover Air Force Base officials only confirmed the dignified transfer of two — Staff Sgt. Grone and Sgt. Southard — because their families gave the Air Force permission to release their names.
“Other Fallen service members may (have been) included as part of this dignified transfer. News media coverage is subject to approval by the surviving designated family member,” said Christin K. Michaud, chief of public affairs for Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations, in a Monday statement.
A dignified transfer is the process by which, upon return from a theater of operations to the United States, the remains of fallen military members are transferred from an aircraft to a vehicle. The remains are then moved to the mortuary facility at the Dover base.
Such transfers are not ceremonies; rather, they are solemn movements of the transfer case by a carry team composed of military personnel from the fallen member’s respective service.
The procedure is conducted for every U.S. military member who dies while in service to their country. A senior ranking officer of the deceased’s service presides over each dignified transfer.
