Tennessee Navy SEAL Killed in NATO Helicopter Attack

Aaron Carson Vaughn, a navy SEAL from Tennessee, died in the NATO helicopter crash in Afghanistan on Saturday, family members confirmed.

Aaron Vaughn's family member told News Channel 3 that he was among 38 people who perished in a Taliban attack on a NATO Chinook troop transport helicopter over eastern Afghanistan.

Taliban insurgents have claimed responsibility for attacking the helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade, according to reports.

About 22 SEALs were killed in the attack. They were among the 31 U.S. special operation troops, and seven Afghans killed in the crash.

Vaughn's grandmother, Geneva Vaughn, tells News Channel 3 that her grandson was a proud father, and a brave soldier.

"I'm very proud of him," she says. "He was such a good boy, and he loved his country enough to put his life on the line."

Geneva Vaughn adds that her grandson had a chance to serve stateside, but had a calling instead to return overseas. The entire family was proud to say Aaron was a member of Navy SEAL Team 6, the same team responsible for the raid that took down Osama Bin Laden, the grandmother told the news station.

"I talked to him on his birthday and he said, 'Granny, don't worry about me. I'm not afraid because I know where I'm going.' He was a Christian," she says.

Aaron Vaughn's grandmother also says her grandson planned to return home in November, and hoped to come to her house to hunt. He leaves behind a five-year-old boy and a newborn girl born weeks before Aaron Vaughn was deployed, according to the report.

"He wanted to be a SEAL ever since he was a little boy," she said.