An Aggie and a long-serving member of the Air Force has died in Afghanistan.

Lieutenant Colonel Mark Stratton graduated from Texas A&M in 1991, according to the Association of Former Students. A graduate of an Alabama high school, he became a member of Squadron One in the Corps of Cadets, and earned a political science degree.

He had been assigned to the Pentagon, but was serving as commander of a reconstruction team in the war torn country. According to the Department of Defense, he and a 21-year-old airman were killed Tuesday when an explosive device detonated near their base.

Lt. Col. Stratton, 39, leaves behind a wife and three children. According to the Association of Former Students, funeral services are pending, but Stratton will be buried at Arlington National Cemetary outside Washington, DC.