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Security investigators said on Tuesday the pilot of a helicopter that crashed in Los Angeles last year, killing basketball star Kobe Bryant, his daughter and six others, flew through the clouds in apparent violation of federal standards and had probably become disoriented.
Robert Sumwalt, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said pilot Ara Zobayan was flying under visual flight rules, which meant he had to be able to see where he was going.
Zobayan flew the plane so that it climbed sharply and had almost passed through the clouds when the Sikorsky S-76 helicopter tilted sharply and plunged into the hills below, killing everyone on board.
The helicopter did not have so-called “black box” recording devices, which were not required.
“I think the whole world is watching because it’s Kobe,” said Ed Coleman, professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and expert in safety science.
Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and six other passengers were flying from Orange County to a youth basketball tournament at his Mamba Sports Academy in Ventura County on January 26, 2020, when the helicopter flew encountered heavy fog in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles. There was no sign of mechanical failure, the NTSB said.
The NTSB, which met remotely on Tuesday, has no enforcement powers. He can only submit suggestions to organizations like the Federal Aviation Administration or the US Coast Guard, which have repeatedly rejected recommendations after other disasters.
Some observers have recommended recommending that helicopters have a terrain detection and warning system, a device that signals when a plane is in danger of crashing. The helicopter in Bryant’s crash did not have the system, which the NTSB recommended as mandatory for helicopters. The FAA only requires it for air ambulances.
Federal lawmakers sponsored the Kobe Bryant and Gianna Bryant Helicopter Safety Act to make the devices mandatory on all helicopters carrying six or more passengers. Former NTSB chairman James Hall said he hoped the FAA would need the systems in the aftermath of the crash.
“Historically, it took high-profile tragedies to push the regulatory needle forward,” he said.
The devices cost over $ 35,000 and require training and maintenance.
Helicopter Association International has discouraged what it called a “one-size-fits-all” method. President and CEO James Viola said in a statement that mandating industry-wide equipment would be “ineffective” and “potentially dangerous”.
Even though Zobayan was flying low in a hilly area, the warning system may not have prevented the crash, Coleman said. The terrain could have triggered the alarm “which goes off constantly” and distracted the pilot or encouraged him to lower his volume or ignore it, he added.
Federal investigators said Zobayan, an experienced pilot who often flew on Bryant, may have “misperceived” the angles at which he descended and banked, which can occur when a pilot becomes disoriented in poor visibility. , according to NTSB documents.
The others killed were Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli; his wife, Keri; their daughter Alyssa; Christina Mauser, who helped Bryant coach her daughter’s basketball team; and Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton. Alyssa and Payton were Gianna’s teammates.
The crash led to lawsuits and counter actions. On the day a massive memorial service was held at Staples Center, where Bryant played most of his career, Vanessa Bryant sued Zobayan and the companies that owned and operated the helicopter for negligence and the wrongful death of her husband and of his daughter. The families of other victims sued the helicopter companies, but not the pilot.
Vanessa Bryant said Island Express Helicopters, which operated the aircraft, and its owner, Island Express Holding Corp, had not properly trained or supervised Zobayan. She said the pilot had been reckless and negligent to fly in the fog and should have aborted the flight.
Zobayan’s brother said Kobe Bryant was aware of the risks of flying in a helicopter and his survivors were not entitled to damages from the pilot. Island Express Helicopters denied any responsibility and said the crash was “an act of God” that it could not control. He also countered two FAA air traffic controllers, claiming the crash was caused by their “series of wrong acts and / or omissions”.
The counter suit claims that a controller incorrectly rejected Zobayan’s request for “flight following” or radar assistance in fog. Officials said the controller terminated service because the radar could not be maintained at the aircraft’s flight altitude.
According to the lawsuit, the controller said he would soon lose radar and communications, but radar contact was not lost. When a second controller took over, the lawsuit said the first controller had failed to brief him on the helicopter, and since radar services were not completed properly, the pilot believed he was being followed.
Vanessa Bryant also sued the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, accusing lawmakers of sharing unauthorized photos of the crash site. California now has state law prohibiting such conduct.
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