The Army released the identity on Tuesday of a soldier who died in the Middle East last week, a day after Task & Purpose confirmed the woman as the 19th U.S. service member to die while deployed in support of the Iran war. Capt. Bianca C. Wilkerson, 37, of Norfolk, Virginia, died on a non-combat flight to Saudi Arabia, the Army said, from a “medical incident.”
Wilkerson was posthumously promoted to major, the Army said. Wilkerson was assigned to Headquarters, U.S. Army Central & Third Army, Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, and was deployed to Doha, Qatar, where she was “supporting overseas operations.”
The Pentagon has been referring to the Iran war as “overseas operations” since July 7, when Department of Defense officials declared the end of Operation Epic Fury. The other troop deaths listed under Overseas Operations include four service members who died in July, three in Jordan and one in Iraq.
Wilkerson’s death was added to the Defense Casualty Analysis System Sept. 21. Four other U.S. troops were listed under Overseas Operations, including four service members who died in July, three in Jordan and one in Iraq.
“Since Operation Epic Fury has concluded, the Department classifies casualties as overseas operations in the [U.S. Central Command] area of responsibility,” a defense official said.
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Wilkerson is now the eighth American whose death the Pentagon classifies as “non-hostile.” The others include a Navy officer who died in a helicopter crash and six airmen who were killed in a KC-135 crash. Those deaths were listed under the category of “accidents,” while Wilkerson’s death is currently classified as undetermined.
Sporadic combat since February
In July, when fighting restarted between the U.S. and Iran, three soldiers were killed in Jordan in mid-July attacks on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, one of the U.S. bases in the country that Iran has repeatedly targeted. A fourth soldier died in Iraq while troops worked to disable a crashed Iranian drone.
After a pause in fighting in August, back-and-forth attacks restarted this month after the U.S. targeted Iranian mine launchers in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian forces fired missiles and drones at U.S. bases in the region, which the U.S. and partner nations say were intercepted. During September, the number of troops wounded in action since July 7 rose above 400. However, it is unclear when those casualties happened, as some injuries, such as traumatic brain injuries, can take time to be discovered, and entries are not immediately logged in DCAS.
Since Feb. 28, when the U.S. began combat operations against Iran, at least 831 troops have been wounded in action.
