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win. War is hell. War is chaos. And as we saw yesterday with the tragic crash of our KC135 tanker, um, bad things can happen. American heroes, all of them. And as I have with all of them, as we have, we will greet those heroes at Dover. And their sacrifice will only recommit us to the resolve of this mission.
But war in this context and in pursuit of peace is necessary. Which is why each day on bended knee, we continue to appeal to heaven, to Almighty God's providence to watch over and give special skill and confidence to our leaders and to our warriors. To those warriors who this nation prays for every single day. I hear from all of you out there who pray for them every day. Stay on bended knee and pray for them. I continue to say to them, Godspeed. May the Lord bless you and keep you and keep going. Mr. Chairman, over to you.
>> Thank you, Mr. Secretary, and good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for joining us today. Uh, before I start with an update, I also want to address the tragic loss of our KC135 refueling aircraft yesterday. The incident occurred over friendly territory in western Iraq while the crew was on a combat mission and again was not the result as SenCom has said was not the result of hostile or friendly fire. We're still treating this as an active rescue and recovery operation. As SenCom announced this morning, four airmen have been recovered and the Air Force and US Central Command will provide updates as information becomes available. Please keep these brave airmen, their families, friends, and units in your thoughts in the coming hours and days. Our service members make an incredible sacrifice to go forward and do the things that the nation asks of them. It's a reminder of the true cost of the dedication and commitment of the joint force.