Feistner, Curtis Donald
Male
Verified U.S. Army Major Curtis Donald Feistner, 34, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, was killed in action on February 22, 2002, near Basilan Island, Philippines.
Their Story
Curtis Donald Feistner was a 34-year-old U.S. Army major from White Bear Lake, Minnesota. He served with Company E, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), a unit specializing in night-time aviation missions for special operations forces.
On February 22, 2002, Feistner was aboard an MH-47E Chinook helicopter conducting a mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines. The aircraft crashed into the sea near Basilan Island, a known stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf militant group. All ten U.S. service members on board, including Feistner, were killed. The U.S. Department of Defense stated the crash was not due to hostile fire, attributing it to an accident.
Feistner's death occurred during the early phase of Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign launched after the September 11, 2001 attacks. While major combat operations were underway in Afghanistan, a separate theater opened in the Philippines to assist the government in counterterrorism operations against Abu Sayyaf, which had pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda.
The crash was one of the deadliest single incidents for U.S. forces in the Philippines theater. The bodies of the service members were recovered. Feistner was posthumously awarded the Meritorious Service Medal and the Air Medal with 'V' device for valor, according to military records.
Major Feistner is memorialized on the Global War on Terrorism Memorial at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, and on the Special Operations Memorial at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. His unit, the 160th SOAR, is known as the 'Night Stalkers.'
Explore Further
Major Feistner 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.
