Pennsylvania Governor Corbett Issues Flag Order to Honor Fallen Indiana County Soldier

PA National Guard Pilot was Flight Instructor at Fort Indiantown Gap

HARRISBURG, Pa., April 18, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Tom Corbett today ordered all U.S. and Pennsylvania flags in the Capitol Complex and at commonwealth facilities in Indiana County to fly at half-staff on Saturday, April 20, to honor U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Matthew Paul Ruffner, who was killed in Afghanistan on April 9.

Ruffner, 34, and fellow Pennsylvania Army National Guardsman Chief Warrant Officer Jarett Yoder, 26, of Berks County, were killed when their AH-64 Apache helicopter crashed in eastern Afghanistan. They were both members of the 1-104^th Attack Reconnaissance Battalion who were shipped out to Afghanistan last August.

Flags shall remain at half-staff until sunset Saturday, the day of Ruffner's burial.

Ruffner joined the military in 1997, starting out as a mechanic and later as an infantry platoon leader with the Army National Guard's 1-110^th Infantry in Indiana. He subsequently transferred to the aviation career field. Most recently, Ruffner was a full-time flight instructor at Fort Indiantown Gap.

Flags will also be lowered in tribute to Yoder on the day of his burial.

All Pennsylvanians are invited to join in this tribute.

Media contact: Janet Kelley, 717-783-1116

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor