Kalitta Air’s N808CK as KFS6599 transported the remains of U.S. Army Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton from Dover Air Force Base, DE to Fayetteville, NC where he was received by his wife, Mia.
From Dover, Sgt. Swinton was escorted by a fellow U.S. Army Staff Sergeant, continuing the military’s long standing tradition of ensuring the fallen are accompanied every step of the way until they are returned to their loved ones.
Sgt. Swinton, an air defense soldier assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, was killed in action on July 19 at Erbil Air Base, Iraq, during the controlled detonation of a downed Iranian one-way attack drone while conducting an operation intended to safeguard fellow service members. He will be posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Action Badge, and promoted to Staff Sergeant.