Edward John Murphy was born on November 14, 1968, in Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware. He was married to Barclay Randall Murphy. graduated from the University of South Carolina before being commissioned as a Signal Officer in the U.S. Army. During his military career, he also completed the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and earned a Master of Arts in Military History. He initially served with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, followed by an assignment with the Ranger Training Brigade at Fort Benning, Georgia. Throughout his career, he deployed in support of Operation Joint Forge in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Joint Task Force Liberia before deploying to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. At the time of his deployment, he was serving as the Deputy J-6 for the Southern European Task Force (SETAF), based at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza, Italy.

On April 6, 2005, a U.S. Army CH-47D Chinook helicopter #88-00100, flying under the callsign “WINDY-25”, crashed near Khudaidad village, in Afghanistan's Ghazni Province, approximately 80 miles (130 km) southwest of Kabul. The aircraft belonged to Company F ("Big Windy") of the 159th Aviation Regiment, part of the 12th Aviation Brigade, which at the time was assigned to V Corps and based in Germany. WINDY-25 had departed on a routine resupply and passenger transport mission, carrying personnel and supplies between forward operating bases in eastern Afghanistan. The Chinook was transporting a mixed group consisting of Army soldiers, National Guard personnel, a Marine, Army Reserve personnel, and civilian contractors. As the helicopter approached the Ghazni area, it encountered a severe dust storm with winds exceeding 45 knots. These conditions created a "brownout" environment, in which blowing dust completely obscured visual references. During the flight, the pilots lost outside visibility and attempted to transition from visual flying to instrument flight procedures. Investigators later determined that the crew became spatially disoriented, meaning they could no longer accurately perceive the aircraft's attitude and movement. While attempting to regain control, the helicopter was over-controlled and ultimately crashed. All 18 people aboard were killed: five Army crewmembers and thirteen passengers. The aircraft was destroyed. Subsequent investigations found no evidence of enemy fire or hostile action; the accident was attributed entirely to the extreme weather conditions and the resulting loss of situational awareness.

Maj Murphy was among the passengers aboard the aircraft and was killed in the crash. He is now buried in the Beaufort National Cemetery, Beaufort, Beaufort County, South Carolina, USA. His legacy continues to be honored through the Vicenza Chapter of the Signal Corps Regimental Association, which bears his name. Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, dedicated its Fallen Warrior Memorial in his honor, and the University of South Carolina established an Army ROTC scholarship recognizing his service.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.chinook-helicopter.com, www.dvidshub.net