T
he Pentagon announced March 5 that SSgt. Christopher S. Frost, 24, of Waukesha, Wis., was killed March 3 in the crash of an Iraqi Army Mi-17 helicopter near Bayji, Iraq. Frost was a public affairs specialist deployed to Iraq from the 377th Air Base Wing at Kirtland AFB, N.M. According to a Kirtland release, the helicopter crashed during a dust storm. A six-year Air Force veteran, Frost had deployed to the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq in September. Seven members of the Iraqi Air Force also onboard were killed as well. Coalition combat search and rescue teams began searching for the helicopter when it was reported overdue on March 3 and found wreckage on March 4 around noon, per a Multi-National Force-Iraq statement.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth visited the site of U.S. Space Command’s future home Dec. 12 and endorsed the move to establish the headquarters in Alabama after years of political back and forth.
