Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Frank Bryant

Lieutenant Colonel Frank D. Bryant, Jr., 37, of Knoxville, Tennessee was assigned to 56th Operations Group, Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. On April 27, 2011, Lt. Col. Bryant died in Kabul, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained from gunfire from an Afghan military trainee.

LtCol Bryant graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1995, where he was an accomplished wrestler, captain of the Academy’s 1995 team and was named its most valuable player. After graduating, he completed pilot training and became a T-37 instructor before flying the F-16 Fighting Falcon. During his 16-year career, he accumulated 3,047 flying hours—including 121 combat hours—and served in South Korea, South Carolina, Arizona and the United Arab Emirates. He also earned a master’s degree in business administration from Touro University. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart,

Brigadier General J.D. Harris Jr. remembered him as “an excellent pilot, wingman and Airman” who excelled in everything. His longtime friend Clarence Dunagan described him as perpetually happy and smiling, adding, “His sense of loyalty and honor was unsurpassed.”

LtCol Bryant was survived by his wife and son.