Gov. Beshear Recognizes Sacrifice of Kentucky Soldier and Airman

Gov. Beshear Recognizes Sacrifice of Kentucky Soldier and Airman

FRANKFORT, Ky. (March 17, 2026) - Gov. Andy Beshear recognized the sacrifice of a Kentucky soldier and a Kentucky airman who died while supporting Operation Epic Fury.

"Sgt. Benjamin Pennington and Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt are two American heroes who called our commonwealth home, and we must stand together as Kentuckians to honor their sacrifice," said Gov. Beshear. "Please join Britainy and me as we continue to pray for their families, our fellow Americans in mourning and our brave service members."

According to the U.S. Department of War, Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky, died March 8 from injuries sustained during an enemy attack on March 1 at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. He was assigned to 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade, Fort Carson, Colorado.

A funeral service for Pennington, who was posthumously promoted to staff sergeant, will be held Saturday, March 21, at Central Hardin High School in Cecilia, Kentucky. Pennington will be interred at Kentucky Veterans Cemetery in Radcliff.

The Department of War also announced that Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky, died March 12 in the crash of a KC-135 refueling tanker in western Iraq. She was assigned to 6th Air Refueling Wing, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.

Funeral services and burial information for Pruitt have not yet been announced.

The Governor will order that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset on the days of Pennington's and Pruitt's interments, for which arrangements are still pending.

Flag status information is available at governor.ky.gov/flag-status.