OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. -- The 557th Weather Wing held a ruck march April 25, 2025, to memorialize a fallen Airman.
More than 50 service members attended the Capt. Nylander Memorial Ruck march held in memory of Capt. Nathan Nylander, a weather officer who was assigned to the 25th Operational Weather Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona.
Nylander was killed along with eight others during a shooting perpetrated by an Afghan military trainee at Kabul International Airport on April 27, 2011.
“Serving in the military is tough – I’ll be the first to tell you that, but I am honored to be rucking with you today,” said Col. Hank Chilcoat, 1st Weather Group commander, to the participants in the 557th WW atrium. “We’ve all raised our right hand to defend our country, and we all make sacrifices doing it, but some of us like Capt. Nylander and eight other fellow Americans made the ultimate sacrifice that day, and they are the true heroes.”
Also speaking was Master Sgt. Matthew Findley, 1st WXG systems and training superintendent, who knew Nylander and credited him for helping him during his first deployment when he was a young Airman.
“He was looking out for me making sure that I had everything I needed as a very young Airman who had no idea what was going on,” Findley said. “He may not have been my flight commander, but at the end of the day, he was my leader.”
The event started inside the 557th WW with Chilcoat speaking about the meaning of the ruck march and taking a moment of silence for those who lost their lives. Participants took a path through the Coffman Heights housing complex and then circled around Building D before making their way back.
“We’ve had partners throughout security forces making sure we had some road guards for safety, CE (civil engineers) for making sure we have these wonderful traffic cones that help mark our path along with a lot of collaboration with them and our wing and our wing leadership,” said Staff Sgt. Katherine Ratliff Boomer, 2nd Weather Squadron unit training manager and event organizer. “Overall, I think it’s just been a great day to come out and remember those who have lost their lives.”
While a vast majority of the participating Airmen didn’t know Nylander personally, the day still holds special meaning. For Senior Master Sgt. Matthew Renkosiak, 1st WXG operations superintendent, an event like this brings service members together.
“What it means to me is, everyone talks a lot about teamwork and what it means to be a part of something bigger than yourself. I think nothing better captures that than a team of Airmen, civilians, Army all out here for someone they don’t know, but someone who wore the uniform and someone they care about,” Renkosiak said.