Sergeant Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, was killed in action on Sunday, July 19, during a controlled demolition of a downed Iranian drone at Erbil Air Base in Iraq. His death is currently under investigation.
Swinton was assigned to D Battery, 2nd Battalion, 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
A second service member sustained minor injuries during the detonation of unexploded ordnance from the drone, according to US Central Command.
Swinton's death marks the 17th US service member casualty since the conflict with Iran began on February 28. This follows the deaths of First Lieutenant Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Hawaii, and Private Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Texas, who were killed on Friday during Iranian strikes on a US airbase in Jordan.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Monday that the dignified transfer of troops, scheduled to take place at Dover Air Force Base on Tuesday with President Donald Trump in attendance, has been postponed. The new date and time for the ceremony are still being finalized.