Darin H. Pontell

1998

Lieutenant Pontell chose the Navy after his brother, Steve, was killed in a crash off LEXINGTON, wanting to pick up where his big brother left off. He was commissioned with the Class of 1998 and designated as an intelligence officer. Lieutenant Pontell spent time deployed to the Mediterranean Sea and Persian Gulf aboard DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER while part of Carrier Air Wing Seven, providing tactical strike data for pilots. Lieutenant Pontell had recently been reassigned to a position inside the Pentagon. He was nearing the end of a 12-hour shift when Flight 77 crashed.