The truth is, had Kimberly’s family known Mark Strub prior to the accident they would have painfully mourned for Kimberly and grieved for Mark Strub. The mere possibility of Mark Strub’s incarceration would have sickened them. But without knowing who Mark Strub is, he becomes the easiest target for blame. So blame him for his “negligence”, and hate him for being at the wrong place at the wrong time as some do. Unfortunately, that tainted perspective does nothing but add tragedy to tragedy!

If only it were possible to introduce Kimberly’s family to Mark Strub objectively. Then they would be comforted to know that Kimberly was in the company of a well meaning, tender hearted, generous man of integrity who; would never in a million years have intentionally done anything to harm Kimberly in any way. Then at least they would know that Mark Strub didn’t cause Kimberly’s death due to some haphazard mentality or disrespect for human life.

I believe that we should strive to do our best and trust God to do the rest. And when we fall short despite our best efforts because we’re imperfect human beings…shouldn’t there be grace? Who is perfect? Mark Strub fell short the day of the accident, but he didn’t do it on purpose!

For those of you who are curious about what type of guy Mark Strub is, here’s what I know. In the past decade and a half I’ve had the opportunity to professionally work with him on many remodeling projects. Despite the fact that I’m a designer who could drive just about anyone crazy because I’m such a perfectionist, Mark Strub managed early on to earn my trust. If not for his consistent diligence to a high standard of excellence, and the fact that I always knew he respected where I was coming from… he would never have made the cut. The high standard of excellence I’m talking about not only speaks of his meticulous skill level as a carpenter, but it speaks to the fact that he’s forever demonstrating the utmost respect to the people around him. In an industry full of contractors with a slap it together – get her done attitude, Mark’s desire to offer his best ALL the time to EVERYONE has exemplified his strong character and been refreshing! It would have been completely out of character for Mark to take anyone’s life lightly. He is a respecter of persons, a guy who always puts everyone else first!

I suspect that in Kimberly’s last moments she would have sensed that she was in the company of a decent, humble, caring person who shared her love for life and the celebration that goes along with it. Please don’t mistake this as my being flippant, but I can’t help but reflect on the scripture that says: “Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest.” Luke 12:25-26 Is it possible that from God’s perspective Kimberly may have been blessed to experience that last flight before entering Eternity on her appointed day? Only God knows, but I do believe ultimately that God is sovereign. That in itself is a powerful truth that I sincerely hope will bring healing and resolve to everyone involved!

Thank you AOPA for covering this story. If nothing else it will serve as a wakeup call to all pilots. You can never be too careful!

Sincerely,

Amy Meadows Gwidt
2321 Jelinski Circle
Plover, WI 54467

First, from the content of the article, Mr. Strub is plainly representative of virtually all of us. He is in GA for the love of it and passionate about sharing that love with any who will listen. I cannot imagine any of us not relating to the circumstances which gave rise to the flight.

I can remember descending down a “sucker hole” clear of the clouds. And then there were the clouds that appeared below us somehwere east of Petersburg, WV at night and unforecast. VFR on top at night and no IFR rating. Following the Wisconsin river below the clouds to get to Boscobel, WI, I suspect legal minimuns but I didn’t like it. All these things turned out okay but the legal vultures of today and the FCC excuse me FAA thugs they both are thugs, make it so like in the Bette Midler song, THE ROSE “…the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live…..”. and John Prine from his CD “John Prine Fair & Square” song “Safety Joe”, teaches us that there isn’t a flight that is prudent and we shouldn’t leave the rubber room. Life is more that that. Things happen if you do anything. It’s not like in Juni Fisher’s song “Can’t Complain” where in the 1880′s the americans had some gumption. Now it’s long live the Nanny State. Oh “What A Ways We’ve Come” – Gibson Brothers but it’s not a good way.

Sincerely,

Jim Jenkins
WAGS Radio
Bishopville, SC

I don’t see the this report a glorification of anything. Being in the media business for nearly 30 years, I see bias all the time in stories, but I can’t say that for this one.

Truthfully we should all be appreciative of knowint the details of this sad lesson. Remember, “a good pilot is always learning!” The poor choices Mr. Strub made may not have been what you think you would have chosen to do, but I find it hard to believe that there isn’t a pilot that hasn’t done something that could have led to something just as catastrophic. Whether it was landing high and fast on a grass strip, running out of gas, getting lost and being somewhere you shouldn’t , taking off without fully completing the planes checklist or, some other even simpler mistake. It drives home a point that has already been made here earlier on. …We pilots face critical moments every minute we’re in the cockpit. We are trained how to deal with failures of our airships and trained on what those commonly are. We are trained on how to avoid endangering lives on the ground, as well as our own in the air. But that doesn’t make us perfect or flawless. Even the best of the best can meet a challenge or make a decision that they can’t overcome. Scott Crossfield’s death comes to mind. Yet, knowing of many of his accomplishments and also that he made a mistake that also tragically ended his life and could have been endangering to others, I am glued to every show, writing or interview he did prior.

I am sorry that Kimberly Reed was killed, her family suffers her loss and that Mr. Strub has to deal with her death for the rest of his life. Mr. Strub obviously was not purposely doing anything with the intent to harm anyone. While as tragic as this outcome is, we are all fortunate to learn of the details. I know I am not alone in saying I hope to never read another story of any kind that has a tragic outcome. But if it does, I won’t kill the messenger.

I believe that for every bad that happens, we must make more good from from it. I am sure that in some manner, this story being told will save more lives than it took.

Rest In Peace Kimberly Reed. God Speed Mr. Strub.

When you take a non-flyer on a charity flight there is an assumption on their part that the pilot is essentially a professional — or at least is operating under professional safety standards. Straub was not. That he did not know where he was, was flying at 50 feet, and was not aware of the wires was an egregious violation of the trust the passenger put in him.

He was also performing aerobatics throughout the flight and essentially during the fatal last few minutes when — I believe, it is expressly forbidden in charity flights for this very reason. Straub is not the victim here. He caused this death because of his disregard for the regulations and common sense. Straub is the reason GA is under attack, not a victim of an overzealous prosecutor.

Justice was absolutely served by his jail time and loss of his license.

But that’s not the point. Anytime the law offers a stiff fine (death, lifetime incarceration) as a possibility the accused will choose the lesser sentence rather than face such an uncertainty. As the darkest Aftrican joke goes, “Do you want Mumba or Death by Mumba” ——-they’re the same or very close. Flash back to stretch torture in England: “Do you want to be stretched, or do you wish to lie to satisfy our needs” ….as did this pilot. Is this fair? Will not the innocent always confess to crimes in this circumstance? Is this what we mean by having “the English system of justice?”

Would he have “confessed” if one choice was one month in prison and the other 3 months in prison?

It is not fair because the gap between the two choices is too great. All an attorney has present the case so the worse choice is a possibility by our laws. We’d all pick a definite lesser sentence rather than risk the uncertain “death by Mumba”

By the way, regardless of the right and wrong legal arguments, this pilot was ideal prey for our legal system. He’s resourceful and very practical, based upon what you’ve said about his craftsman work——-why would he want to spend thousands of dollars on a trial? Had he owned 2 lear jets and a helicopter, i.e. had the resources, he may have done so. Is this fair, or does our legal system depend more on our resources and disadvantage the resourceful…..

Scary isn’t it. Many pilots fall into this categoy; will more fall prey to this system?

Thanks for presenting this.