James Trent Alcorn, the 35-year-old killed Saturday in a motorcycle crash in Anchorage, was a noncommissioned officer and paratrooper in the U.S. Army at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson who served three tours in Afghanistan and Iraq.
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Alcorn died when he lost control of his motorcycle as he headed south at high speed on Gambell Street between 15th Avenue and Fireweed Lane Saturday afternoon and hit a utility pole, police said.
Alcorn was a field artilleryman with the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division who joined the Army from Kentucky in 2006 and was assigned to Alaska in June 2016, according to a statement released late Monday by U.S. Army Alaska. He served two combat tours in Afghanistan and one in Iraq.
His assignments after basic training and before coming to Alaska were at Fort Benning, Fort Knox and Fort Bragg, the Army said.
The statement included a remembrance from Lt. Col. Tobias Bennett, commander of the 2nd Battalion, 377th Parachute Field Artillery Regiment.
"Staff Sgt. Alcorn was an amazing paratrooper, leader, and noncommissioned officer," Bennett's statement said. "He was well-known throughout the battalion for his technical and tactical competence, his upbeat personality, and his ability to motivate and care for his paratroopers. He will truly be missed by all who knew him."