President Trump joined a somber ceremony at Dover Air Force Base Saturday to mark the final homecoming of six Army Reserve soldiers killed when an Iranian drone struck a US facility in Kuwait.
Air Force One touched down on the tarmac at Dover at 1:09 pm Saturday for the arrival of the six flag-draped coffins, and Trump deplaned about 20 minutes later bearing a solemn expression.
He slowly descended the stairs of Air Force One, greeted military members, and made a fist gesture to reporters who followed him up from Florida.
The base has housed mortuary services since 1955 and was the site of similar ceremonies during the Vietnam War and other conflicts.
Trump spoke briefly about the ceremony at a summit for the new “Shield of the Americas” at his Doral golf club in Florida.
“They’re great heroes in our country, and we’re going to keep it that way,” Trump said. “When it comes to war, there’s always that. We’re going to keep it to a minimum.”
Trump was last at Dover in December to receive the bodies of three Americans killed in Syria. Saturday’s dignified transfer ceremony is the first since Trump ordered massive US air strikes on Iran in a bid to destroy Tehran’s nuclear weapons program and missile stockpile, and decapitate its muderous Islamic regime.
The six Army reservists brought home were: Nicole Amor, 39; Cody Khork, 35; Declan Coady, 20; Robert Marzan, 54; Jeffrey O’Brien, 45; and Noah Tietjens, 42.
The soldiers were struck “during Iran’s initial attacks in the region,” the Pentagon said when announcing the first of the casualties. They had been stationed at an operations center at Port Shuaiba south of Kuwait City, one of numerous US troop positions meant to protect US allies who came under fire by the Iranians.
Trump said last week there will “likely be more” deaths in the conflict. On Friday, he posted on Truth Social that “there will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”
Trump flew Saturday from Florida, where he was hosting a gathering for his new “Shield of the Americas” group focusing on Latin America.
All six soldiers were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) Army Reserve base in Des Moines. That had them providing all the essentials that keep a powerful military force on the move: food, water, fuel, ammunition, transportation, and other supplies.
Coady, the youngest killed, was trained as an IT specialist. He was just two months short of turning 21, and had been sending regular dispatches to his family. He was studying cybersecurity at Drake University in Des Moines. He was posthumously promoted to sergeant.
Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, of White Bear Lake, Minn., was just five days from returning home.
“She was almost home,” her grief-stricken husband, Joey Amor, said Tuesday.
An avid gardener, Amor enlisted in the Guard as a logistics specialist in 2005 and transferred to the Army Reserve in 2006, and had previously deployed to Kuwait and Iraq.
O’Brien, hailed from Waukee, Iowa. His family called him “a true hero in every sense of the word.”
“He was not only a role model to our kids, but also a goofy and silly dad, always looking for ways to make the kids laugh. He was an exceptional and caring husband, even finding ways to take care of us while serving 7,000 miles away,” O’Brien’s family said in a statement.
Marzan, of Sacramento, Calif., is survived by his wife and family, according to a statement by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who called him “a courageous Californian whose service to our nation was marked by honor and distinction.”
Khork, a Captain from Winter Haven, Florida, was a tactician and a “solid leader,” said Sgt. 1st Class Brian Kochendorfer.
“He cared about people. ‘Hey, I’m not going to put soldiers in harm’s way.’ That’s what you look for in a commander,” he said.
Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, of Nebraska, was a martial arts instructor back home.
“He is one of the most amazing human beings I know, who dedicated his life not just to the country but during his free time he dedicated his life to the students and the youth of our community,” said family friend Faith Melegrito.
“These men and women all bravely volunteered to defend our country, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten,” Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said.