Cruttenden, Aaron Brett
Male
Verified U.S. Army Sergeant Aaron Brett Cruttenden, 25, of Mesa, Arizona, died on November 7, 2010, in a hostile incident southwest of Combat Outpost Bari Alai, Afghanistan.
Their Story
Aaron Brett Cruttenden was a 25-year-old sergeant from Mesa, Arizona, serving with the 161st Engineer Company, 27th Engineer Battalion, 20th Engineer Brigade, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. His military service included deployments to the Philippines and the Horn of Africa prior to his assignment in Afghanistan.
On November 7, 2010, Cruttenden was killed in a hostile incident approximately five kilometers southwest of Combat Outpost Bari Alai in Afghanistan's volatile Kunar Province. According to the Defense Casualty Analysis System, he died of wounds sustained from enemy small arms fire during a dismounted patrol.
His death occurred during Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001 following the September 11 attacks. The mission evolved from counter-terrorism to a protracted counterinsurgency and nation-building effort, with U.S. and allied forces engaged in combat operations primarily in the country's eastern and southern regions.
Sergeant Cruttenden was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, and Meritorious Service Medal. His remains were returned to the United States, and he was buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona in Phoenix.
He is remembered on memorial walls at Fort Bragg and within online veterans' communities. His name is inscribed on Panel 2W, Row 111 of the Arizona 9/11 Memorial at Wesley Bolin Plaza in Phoenix, which honors Arizonans killed in the subsequent wars.
Explore Further
Sgt. Aaron Cruttenden was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001?2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.
