First Delaware woman killed during Iraq war gets bridge named in her honor

The News Journal

Senior Airman Elizabeth Loncki died after her explosive ordnance disposal team was targeted by a car bomber near Baghdad, Iraq, in 2007. The bridge over Del. 1 connecting the main gate of Dover Air Force Base and base housing will be named in the Delaware native's honor.

Senior Airman Elizabeth Loncki kept a diary during her deployment in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

While the Delaware native often wrote down her thoughts, she summed up her service on an explosive ordnance disposal team in an entry that simply said: "If I could only save one life, it would be worth it."

Loncki fulfilled that wish many times over, according to the United States Air Force.

MILITARY TIMES: Senior Airman Elizabeth Loncki

Because of her bravery and the ultimate sacrifice Loncki made for her country in 2007, the bridge over Del. 1 connecting the main gate at Dover Air Force Base with base housing will be named in her honor. A formal dedication has not yet been scheduled.

After disarming more than 20 explosive devices and saving potentially hundreds of lives in her year-long deployment beginning in 2006, the New Castle native died after her team was targeted by a car bomber near Baghdad, Iraq.

The Old Lebanon Road bridge over Del. 1 connecting Dover Air Force Base and base housing will soon be named for Sr. Airman Elizabeth Loncki, a Delaware native who was killed in Iraq in 2007.

According to the U.S. Air Force, Loncki was the first woman from Delaware to die in combat in Operation Iraqi Freedom. She was 23.

“That’s what she wanted to do,” Loncki's father Stephen said just days after her death in a story from The Associated Press. “I was always scared every second of the day, but she thought she could do some good. I believe in my heart that’s what she was doing every day. It’s just a terrible price to pay.”

Dover Rep. Sean M. Lynn was so inspired by Loncki's story that he worked with Dover Air Force Base command to spearhead an effort to rename the bridge.

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The renaming project, facilitated by the Delaware Department of Transportation, will commemorate Loncki, who died along with three other airmen who were part of “Team Lima” while deployed in Baghdad.

“Senior Airman Loncki’s sacrifice for her state and country will never be forgotten," Lynn said in a release.

The bridge over Del. 1 connecting the main gate at Dover Air Force Base with base housing will be named in honor of Delaware native Sr. Airman Elizabeth Loncki, who was killed in 2007 after her explosive ordnance disposal team was targeted by a car bomber near Baghdad, Iraq.

Because of Loncki's passion and dedication to her country, other Dover-area legislators, along with House and Senate leadership, were inspired to request the renaming. There were 17 signatures on the letter sent to DelDOT Secretary Jennifer Cohan.

"This bridge dedication isn’t about putting a sign on a bridge or a building," said Staff Sgt. JJ Hargrove, a fellow explosive ordnance disposal technician with Dover Air Force Base, in a release. "This bridge will serve as a reminder for everyone who enters and leaves Dover Air Force Base, as well as a reminder of the spirit of Senior Airman Loncki."

This will be the 53rd named bridge in Delaware. Right now there are 12 in Kent County, 30 in New Castle County and 10 in Sussex County.

Family members of the late Senior Airman Elizabeth A. Loncki attend the classroom dedication at the First Term Airmen's Center on June 13, 2012, at Dover Air Force Base. The Delaware native native was an explosive ordnance disposal journeyman who was killed in 2007 by a roadside bomb near Baghdad, Iraq. She was the first female service member from Delaware to die in the Baghdad area in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Reach Jerry Smith at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JerrySmithTNJ.