John Castle Pratt was born on May 4, 1961. He completed three combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan during his Army career. He served for more than 20 years in the U.S. Army Aviation Branch, ultimately attaining the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 5, the highest warrant officer rank in the Army. He specialized as an AH-64D Apache Longbow attack pilot and served as the Senior Warrant Officer and Standardization Pilot for the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade at Katterbach Army Airfield in Ansbach, Germany.

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.

CW5 Pratt died from his wounds sustained in the crash and is now buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA. In recognition of his service and leadership, the headquarters building of the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade at Katterbach Army Airfield was dedicated in his memory.

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