Seth Stone (September 17, 1976 - September 30, 2017) was a former

United States Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main funct ...

and two time Silver Star recipient.

Early life and education

Stone was born September 17, 1976, in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Texas. His passion for serving his country led him to pursue a career in the military.

Military career

CDR. Stone attended the US Naval Academy and graduated 1999 with the service selection as a SWO (Surface Warfare Officer). After about two years, he was able to go to transfer and successfully completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training. He demonstrated exceptional skills in various tactical operations, including marksmanship, hand-to-hand combat, and mission planning. Stone graduated from the

U.S. Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy is the sec ...

in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1999. His past assignments include Naval Special Warfare Command and the . Stone's military training included Navy Freefall Parachutist, Basic Underwater Demolitions/SEAL, Survival Evasion Resistance Escape (SERE), Airborne, Special Operations Survival Training, Tomahawk Watch Officer, Basic Aegis Officer Console Operator, Surface Warfare Gunnery and Harpoon Officer. Throughout his career, Stone was deployed to numerous conflict zones. His service included multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, including the Battle of Ramadi in 2006.

Personal life

Stone died September 30, 2017, after his parachute failed to deploy thousands of feet in the air. Stone was 41. At the time of the incident, Commander Stone, who was assigned to

Special Operations Command Pacific The Special Operations Command Pacific, known as SOCPAC, is a sub-unified command of the United States Department of Defense for special operations forces in the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) area of responsibility. History T ...

, was on leave. The coroner's investigation, detailed in the autopsy report, indicates that Stone had jumped from a

hot-air balloon A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries ...

at approximately 4,000 feet altitude.

Awards and decorations

References

1976 births 2017 deaths Skydivers 20th-century American naval officers 21st-century American naval officers United States Navy personnel of the Iraq War United States Navy SEALs personnel Recipients of the Silver Star Parachuting deaths Accidental deaths in California Military personnel from Houston United States Naval Academy alumni Burials at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery {{US-navy-bio-stub