An aviation enthusiast paid an emotional tribute to three members of the Ohio Air National Guard, days after they were among six service personnel killed in a refueling tanker crash in western Iraq.Flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 shows a pilot paying a symbolic tribute in the sky on March 19, tracing the outline of a service member alongside three headstones honoring Ohio’s fallen guardsmen.According to US Central Command, Captain Seth Kowal, Captain Curtis Angst and Master Sergeant Tyler Simmons were part of the US government’s “Operation Epic Fury” on March 12 when the KC-135 aircraft crashed around 2 p.m. The military said the plane was lost while taking off over friendly airspace and the cause of the crash was being investigated.Also killed in the incident were Major John Alex Kleiner of Auburn, Alabama; Capt. Ariana G. of Covington, Washington. Savino; and Technical Sergeant Ashley B. of Bardstown, Kentucky. Pruitt. The Ohio National Guard and the 121st Air Refueling Wing later honored Kowal, Angst and Simmons, BBC News reports.In just 21 days of conflict, at least 16 military aircraft – 12 drones and four aircraft, including THAAD radar systems, an F-35 stealth fighter jet and even the USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier – were hit, although not all incidents were caused by direct enemy fire.In early March, three F-15 fighter planes were shot down in an “apparently friendly fire incident” over Kuwait, officials said. All six crew members were able to eject safely. Boeing built the KC-135 Stratotanker for the US military in the 1950s and early 1960s.It has been the backbone of the US military’s aerial refueling fleet, and allows fighter aircraft to carry out long missions without the need to land.
