STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- The gunman was wounded before leaving site of attack
- His body was found in a different part of the building from where shooting happened
- The investigation is focused on how armed troops were killed by lone gunman
Washington (CNN) — The eight American troops killed by an Afghan pilot earlier this week at an airport in Kabul were all armed with “weapons and ammo,” according to the preliminary findings released Friday of an investigation by NATO and the Afghan government.
The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan has said the military pilot opened fire on the troops, sparking a gunfight on Wednesday.
The investigation centers around how the gunman managed to kill eight armed troops, an ISAF official briefed on the investigation told CNN.
A private American contractor, James A. McLaughlin, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, was also killed in the shooting, according to his company, L-3 MPRI. He was serving as a mentor on the NATO Air Training Command contract since October 2008, according to the firm.
Investigators also found that the gunman was severely wounded prior to departing the room where the initial attack took place, according to an ISAF statement about the investigation. The gunman was found dead in a different part of the building at the military section of the Kabul International Airport, ISAF said.
Photos of the aftermath show a trail of blood as the gunman left the room, the ISAF official said. Investigators do not know if he died of wounds or committed suicide.
“At this point in the investigation, it appears that the gunman was acting alone,” the ISAF statement said. “Beyond that, no Taliban connection with the gunman has been discovered; however, the investigation is still ongoing, and we have not conclusively ruled out that possibility.”
All eight American service members were killed in the room where the shooting occurred.
Also Friday, the U.S. Department of Defense also released the names of the eight airmen killed:
— Maj. Philip D. Ambard, 44, of Edmonds, Washington. He was assigned to the 460th Space Communications Squadron, Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado.
— Maj. Jeffrey O. Ausborn, 41, of Gadsden, Alabama. He was assigned to the 99th Flying Training Squadron, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.
— Maj. David L. Brodeur, 34, of Auburn, Massachussetts. He was assigned to the 11th Air Force, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.
— Master Sgt. Tara R. Brown, 33, of Deltona, Florida. She was assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
— Lt. Col. Frank D. Bryant Jr., 37, of Knoxville, Tennessee. He was assigned to the 56th Operations Group, Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
— Maj. Raymond G. Estelle II, 40, of New Haven, Connecticut. He was assigned to Headquarters Air Combat Command, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.
— Capt. Nathan J. Nylander, 35, of Hockley, Texas. He was assigned to the 25th Operational Weather Squadron, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz.
— Capt. Charles A. Ransom, 31, of Midlothian, Virginia. He was assigned to the 83rd Network Operations Squadron, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.
CNN’s Barbara Starr contributed to this report.
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