| Year Honored | |
|---|---|
| 2007 | |
| Honoree | |
| Karl August Kolb | |
| Agency | |
| Med Flight Air Ambulance | |
| Agency City | |
| Albuquerque | |
| Agency State | |
| NM | |
| Last Call | |
| 10/24/04 | |
| Cause of Death | |
| Medical Aviation Accident | |
| Biography | |
| Karl lived life to the fullest, he had high energy, and he loved to fly the skies. "These were extraordinary people, always above the cell" stated Larry Levy, CEO of Med Flight Air Ambulance. "Losing one good person is like losing five, but to lose five good rescue workers is more than we can absorb at one time. They were all such good people, they were all stars in their profession of flight rescue."<br /> <br /> Karl August Kolb, 56, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was killed in a fiery crash of a Med Flight Air ambulance on October 24, 2004. The rescue team was returning to their Albuquerque base from completion of a patient transfer that entailed the removal of an ill patient from a cruise ship to a hospital in San Diego. Karl was the chief pilot aboard the Learjet 35 and was assisted by a co-pilot. They were in contact with air traffic control until all radio contact was lost. They dropped from the radar screen approximately one minute into flight. The rescue airplane went down in the rugged terrain of mountains. There were no survivors.<br /> <br /> Mr. Kolb attended American Flyers School of Aviation in Ardmore, Oklahoma and Southeastern Oklahoma State University. He moved to Billings, Montana where he flew for Big Sky Airlines and flew air ambulance for Rocky Mountain Helicopters, Inc. In 2004 he joined the team at Med Flight Air Ambulance. He has been flying for 28 years.<br /> <br /> Karl was an incredible person and a seeker of life. Above all he loved his family. Karl and his wife, Linda, were married for almost 29 years at the time of his death. They have two grown children, Renee and Brett, and two granddaughters. Karl loved to work on his '68 Mustang and was restoring a '69 Chevelle with his son. He took his family all over Montana camping, fishing, hiking and cross-country skiing. He spent hours upon hours practicing baseball, softball and basketball with his children. Karl was living his childhood dream, flying and making a difference in others' lives, a dream he surely fulfilled to the end.<br /> <br /> Honored 2007 |
The United States Official National EMS Memorial Service
