Fontan, Jacques Jules
Male
Verified Chief Petty Officer Jacques Jules Fontan, a 36-year-old U.S. Navy SEAL from New Orleans, Louisiana, was killed in a hostile incident in Asadabad, Afghanistan, on June 28, 2005.
Their Story
Jacques Jules Fontan was a Chief Petty Officer in the United States Navy, assigned to SEAL Team Ten based in Norfolk, Virginia. A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, he was 36 years old at the time of his death. His service included deployments to Afghanistan, the Philippines, and the Horn of Africa as part of the U.S. military's global counterterrorism operations.
On June 28, 2005, Fontan was killed in the vicinity of Asadabad, the capital of Afghanistan's Kunar Province. According to U.S. military reports, he was part of a four-man SEAL reconnaissance team operating in the mountainous terrain near the Pakistan border. The team was ambushed by anti-coalition militia forces. Fontan and two other SEALs were killed in the firefight; a fourth team member survived but was seriously wounded.
Fontan's death occurred during Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001 following the September 11 attacks. By mid-2005, the conflict had evolved into a protracted counterinsurgency, with frequent engagements against Taliban and other militant groups in the country's eastern provinces, particularly along the porous border with Pakistan.
The incident triggered a large-scale search and rescue operation. A helicopter sent to extract the SEAL team was shot down by a rocket-propelled grenade, killing all 16 U.S. service members aboard. The events of June 28–29, 2005, resulted in the single largest loss of life for U.S. Naval Special Warfare forces since the Vietnam War. The Department of Defense formally announced Fontan's death on June 30.
Chief Petty Officer Fontan was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Valor and the Purple Heart. He is memorialized on the Navy SEAL Memorial at the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida. His name is also inscribed on the Afghanistan War Memorial at the Museum of the Forgotten Warriors in California.
Explore Further
Jacques Jules Fontan 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.
