Related Resources • Palo Verde on Alert • POWs and MIAs • The Iraq War

Elsewhere on the Web • Entire Casualty List

In any war there will be casualties, and the Iraqi conflict is no different. Some will say that losing one life is too much. Yes, it is very painful to see young people give their lives for any cause. The risks involved in serving in the military are known to those brave people who serve. That doesn't make it any easier when they pay the ultimate price. 

On this page I will mention those of our military who have ties to Arizona who have been confirmed by government sources as either killed or missing in action. I will update the page as new information becomes available.

The following individuals with ties to Arizona were killed in the line of duty during this campaign:

Major Jay Aubin
36 years old
3rd Marine Aircraft Wing
Killed in a U.S. CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter crash on March 21, 2003

The crash in which Maj. Aubin was killed along with 11 other Marines has been defined as an accident. No enemy fire or attack was involved. He, his wife and two children came to Yuma in July 2002. Aubin was an instructor for the Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron-1.
Read the full story from the YumaSun.com.

The following individuals with ties to Arizona are missing or known to be captured:

Pfc. Lori Piestewa
22 years old
507th Maintenance Company, Fort Bliss, TX
Missing and believed to be captured on March 23, 2003 near the southern Iraqi city of An Nasiriyah after an ambush. She was in the same squad as the soldiers who were killed execution style and whose bodies were shown on Iraqi television.

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I hope that this list of Arizonans killed and missing doesn't get any longer than it already is. We hope all our troops fighting in Iraq will return home safely to their families and friends soon.

©2003 Judy Hedding, licensed to About.com