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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:
Mr. Gil & Alena Brandenburg

Lamont Kottwitz, born September 8, 1949, began his flying career in June of 1967 as a student at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Enrolled in the Aviation Technology program, he received his private pilot’s license in February of 1968. In July of that year, he obtained his commercial and instrument ratings at Kankakee School of Aeronautics in Kankakee, Illinois. After a tour of duty in the U.S. Air Force where he attended jet engine maintenance training, he began his corporate flying career in May of 1975.
Lamont was hired as Chief Pilot for Prescription Learning Corporation in Springfield, Illinois to fly a CE-340 for their operations in the U.S. and Canada. In June of 1985, he began employment with Britt Airways as a BE-99 Captain for his commuter airline operating in the Mid West. Two years later, he became a BE-200 Captain for the State of Illinois, flying the Governor and state officials.
In June of 1987, he began a 19-year career with General Telephone (GTE) as a corporate Captain. He flew a variety of aircraft in worldwide operations. Later, as GTE became Verizon Corporation, he attained the position of Chief Pilot, Standards at their White Plains, New York base. Throughout his employment with this large flight department, he and his family moved several times as the company merged and grew. Beginning in Bloomington, Illinois, he lived in Indianapolis, Indiana, San Angelo, Texas, Dallas, Texas and White Plains, New York. It took a skilled and knowledgeable aviator to survive the many changes and mergers in the telephone industry. Lamont always “made the cut” through many force reductions and department mergers.
Lamont’s aviation ratings included ATP, instrument flight instructor and glider certificates. He completed training and earned type ratings in King Air, Citation, Lear Jet, Hawker and two types of Gulfstream aircraft. He also completed many NBAA sponsored courses designed for aviation management and advancement. With more than 20,000 hours of flight time in a career that spanned 38 years in aviation, Lamont was the ultimate professional. His cool leadership in challenging situations earned the respect of fellow crew members and passengers.
On March 2, 2006, Lamont passed away while doing what he loved to do. He and his co-captain had just completed their engine start checklist for a flight from Aiken, South Carolina in one of Verizon’s GIV aircraft. He suffered a pulmonary embolism and succumbed to the effect of the blood clot in his lungs. Lamont was 56 years old. He left behind his wife Kathy and three children. He was a gifted and “natural” pilot (and golfer), known for his mischievous smile and wonderful sense of humor. All of us who know and loved “Mont” will miss him always.