John Randal “Jay” Brainard III was born on September 1, 1985, in Waterville, Kennebec County, Maine. He was the son of John and Susan (Bresnahan) Brainard. He was married to Emily Southwick. He attended Foxcroft Academy in Dover-Foxcroft before enrolling at the University of Maine at Orono, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and graduated magna cum laude in 2008. Through the university’s ROTC program, he received his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army on May 9, 2008. During his time in college, he also helped expand the ROTC program at Husson University in Bangor. After graduation, he completed flight training at Fort Rucker, Alabama, and went on to serve as a platoon leader and later brigade adjutant with the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade. He subsequently deployed to Afghanistan as an AH-64 Apache pilot on his first combat tour, serving with the brigade from Ansbach-Katterbach, Germany, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

On May 28, 2012, AH-64D Apache Longbow 05-07012, operating under the callsign “ASSASSIN-19,” was conducting a combat mission over Wardak Province, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Assigned to the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade from Ansbach-Katterbach, Germany, the aircraft was part of the brigade's attack aviation force, providing armed reconnaissance and close air support to coalition ground troops operating in the region. During the mission, the Apache crashed in hostile territory, killing both crew members aboard: Capt. Brainard II and Chief Warrant Officer 5 Pratt. Initial military reports identified the incident as a helicopter crash, but later information from brigade sources indicated that the aircraft had likely been shot down during combat operations. The helicopter was destroyed, and neither aviator survived.

Cpt Brainard died from his wounds sustained in the crash and is now buried in the Sawyer Cemetery, Plymouth, Penobscot County, Maine, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, aviation-safety.net, www.thedailyme.com