Decorated WWII veteran, 100, dies from coronavirus a century after his twin brother was killed by the Spanish flu pandemic
- Philip Kahn, 100, died of COVID-19 in Long Island, New York, on April 17
- A century earlier, Kahn's twin brother Samuel died of the Spanish flu weeks after they were born in December 1919
- Kahn's grandson, Warren Zysman, said the veteran had been worried about another pandemic coming along in his lifetime
- He suspected he may have COVID-19 after getting a cough days before he died
- Kahn's family held a small military ceremony at his funeral on Monday
A 100-year-old World War II veteran has died from coronavirus a century after his twin brother was killed in the 1918-19 Spanish flu pandemic.
His grandson, Warren Zysman, said Kahn had been worried about another pandemic coming along in his lifetime after his twin brother, Samuel, died from the Spanish flu weeks after they were born in December 1919.
'It was something he brought up quite frequently,' Zysman told CNN.
'I would have conversations with him, he would say to me: 'I told you history repeats itself, 100 years is not that long of a period of time.''
Zysman said Kahn kept up to date on the news surrounding America's coronavirus pandemic - and knew he may be infected with the strain when he began experiencing a cough days before his death.
'He talked about his brother a lot in the last few days,' Zysman said.
Philip Kahn, 100, (pictured) died of COVID-19 in Long Island, New York, on April 17. A century earlier, Kahn's twin brother Samuel died of the Spanish flu weeks after they were born in December 1919
Kahn's family held a small military ceremony at his funeral at New Montefiore Cemetery in West Babylon, Long Island, on Monday (pictured)
Zysman said Khan spoke about his brother on many occasions over the years, keen to keep his memory alive.
'Pretty much every holiday, every event, he would also bring up his brother Samuel,' Zysman said.
'It clearly made a hole in his heart that he never got to meet his twin, and that his twin died a few weeks after birth.
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The Spanish flu pandemic remains the deadliest in modern history, infecting an estimated 500 million people around the world and killing around 50 million.
As of Thursday, more than 2.5 million people worldwide have tested positive for COVID-19 and more than 174,300 have died. In the US alone, there are more than 856,500 infections and at least 48,035 deaths.
Kahn enlisted in the US Army Air Corps pilot training program in 1940 and went on to fight at the Battle of Iwo Jima and helped with aerial surveys after atomic bombings of Japan
Kahn is seen next to a fighter plane he co-piloted during WWII
After the war, Khan worked as an electrical foreman to help build the World Trade Center
Kahn was tested for COVID-19 in his final days, but the family didn't receive the results until after he died.
He was buried at New Montefiore Cemetery in West Babylon, Long Island, on Monday.
'He had always wanted a large military funeral, but we weren't able to provide that to him,' Zysman said.
The cemetery arranged for two people in the armed forces to perform a military ceremony, while a man whose father was a Marine during WWII played the bugle from a safe distance.
'He volunteered because the Air Force protected the Marines by providing cover for them and he felt it was a honor to do this for my grandpa,' Zysman said.
Sampson Lester Friedman, Khan's friend who served with him in the Army Air Force during WWII offered a tribute to the veteran during the funeral.
'[There was] something about him that was very very special,' Friedman said in a video of the tribute provided to CNN.
'On our airplane, he was an engineer, and he was the hardest working guy aboard that airplane.'
Kahn is seen celebrating his 100th birthday with family last December
An American flag marks the spot where Khan was buried at New Montefiore Cemetery
Kahn enlisted in the US Army Air Corps pilot training program in 1940.
After the United States entered the war he served in the Pacific - at the Battle of Iwo Jima and later in the firebombing raids over Japan - earning two bronze stars in the process.
'War is terrible,' Khan told Newsday on his 98th birthday in 2017.
'Soldiers get killed, but the civilians suffer, too, and the women and children suffer the worst.'
After the war, Khan worked as an electrical foreman to help build the World Trade Center, Zysman said.
He later retired to Long Island, where he lived on his own and kept healthy by walking one to two miles each day, his grandson said.
Kahn is not the only person to die from the new coronavirus after losing a sibling to the Spanish flu.
A 96-year-old woman who died in San Antonio, Texas on April 14 lost an older sister to the pandemic, News4SA reported, although she never knew her sibling.
As of Thursday, more than 871,800 people in the US have tested positive for COVID-19 and at least 49,099 have died
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