Posted on 01/27/2020 7:30:02 AM PST by BenLurkin
The helicopter carrying Kobe Bryant and eight others that crashed into a rugged hillside in Calabasas was flying in foggy conditions considered dangerous enough that local police agencies grounded their choppers.
The cause of the crash was unknown, but conditions at the time were such that the Los Angeles Police Department and the county sheriff's department grounded their helicopters.
Bryant’s helicopter left Santa Ana in Orange County, south of Los Angeles, shortly after 9 a.m. and circled for a time just east of Interstate 5, near Glendale. Air traffic controllers noted poor visibility around Burbank, just to the north, and Van Nuys, to the northwest.
After holding up the helicopter for other aircraft, they cleared the Sikorsky S-76 to proceed north along Interstate 5 through Burbank before turning west to follow U.S Route 101, the Ventura Highway.
Shortly after 9:40 a.m., the helicopter turned again, toward the southeast, and climbed to more than 2000 feet (609 meters). It then descended and crashed into the hillside at about 1400 feet (426 meters), according to data from Flightradar24.
When it struck the ground, the helicopter was flying at about 160 knots (184 mph) and descending at a rate of more than 4000 feet per minute, the data showed.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
My husband is a helicopter pilot. He was landing in the LA area about the same time Kobe’s bird went down.
He is batty about safety. He’s made more than a few managers upset by refusing to fly due to safety concerns. I’m very happy he has a new twin engine bird and doesn’t have to fly the single engine AStar any more. That always made me nervous.
About a month ago here in Minneapolistan we had freezing rain one night. Saturday morning I could barely walk to the end of my driveway. But even so, the games must go on and tards don’t care .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjD9_R72lTM
After hearing this I told my wife that I didn’t know if Choppers could fly IFR I just didn’t know but I thought that the Pilot probably told Kobe we shouldn’t go but I think Kobe had a dead line he had to meet, so they went.
IFR = 'I Follow Roads'
This particular S-76 was IFR rated (and pilot) which most copters are not...
Probably why the Police copters weren’t running...
Ground fog is not an issue for aircraft unless take-off or landing.....
However, in the case os a malfunction and having to emergency land in a fog-bound area, all bets are off...
Well, It's taken Megxit off the news, so, there's that.
“It’s taken Megxit off the news, so, there’s that.”
You’re so right! Things could be looking up then.
*shudder*
Best wishes for continued safe flights!
“The guy at the controls of that Sikorsky made the wrong call and he took eight more souls with him.”
Maybe he was offered more money and decided he couldn’t pass it up. I read somewhere yesterday that Bryant owned a helicopter & had flown to practices and elsewhere for years.
So, another pilot telling him they could make it no problem & some extra cash.....
Already taken down.
:-/
Kobe Bryant's helicopter pilot was told he was 'too low' as he flew through thick fog moments before slamming into a hillside in a crash which killed all nine on board.
The NBA legend and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna died along with seven others yesterday when the Sikorsky S-76 (seen left) came down in Calabasas, California.
They had flown from John Wayne Airport near his home in Newport Beach and were on their way to Thousand Oaks to Bryant's Mamba Basketball Academy when they crashed. The flight took off shortly after 9am. At around 9.20am, pilot Ara Zobayan circled above Burbank Airport for 15 minutes.
He was relying on his eyesight alone to make out the terrain beneath him, choosing not to utilize what is known in flying as instrument flight rules (IFR), which would have allowed him to navigate through the clouds but which would have taken longer.
There are conflicting reports that he was trying to land at Burbank and that he was just held there because of it being busy. After around 15 minutes circling above Burbank, he started flying west towards Thousand Oaks, following the highway, but without explanation, dipped south towards Calabasas.
Seconds after being told he was 'too low' by a Socal approach air traffic controller, he crashed into a hillside.
There was only one pilot on board, which an aviation source said it was unusual for the Sikorsky S-76 helicopter Kobe was in.
What exactly caused him to crash remains unconfirmed but 'all the signs' point to the pilot not being able to see where he was going and not using altitude monitoring instruments, the source added, instead relying solely on his eyesight.
It’s surprising that many commercial helicopter pilots are not instrument rated—not a requirement (unless specified by their employer) and if the weather’s bad, they simply don’t go.
My son has a friend who is a retired National Guard Colonel, career aviator, with more than 3,000 hours in Apaches and Cobras before that. He also has a long resume as a civilian helicopter pilot, and has worked extensively for air ambulance services. After almost 30 years as a chopper pilot, he is now getting his IFR certification because his new employer requires it, and is paying for the training.
There’s a better-than-average chance the pilot of that helicopter in wasn’t instrument rated, and was probably operating under “Special Visual Flight Rules” after ATC held him outside Burbank airspace for 15 minutes due to the fog. I am not a chopper pilot, so I’ll leave any discussion of SVFR to those more qualified...
High five!
I guess Crossfield’s fate put the exclamation point on the reason that there aren’t old bold pilots.
Hoover made it to 94 but soared skyward from the peaceful surroundings of his home.
In reviewing Hoover’s life, he did fly in 2003, with a copilot friend in his beloved Shrike Commander. (77 + 4 = 81) He defied gravity at 81. Not enough to top Crossfield’s flying age of 84.
Cumulonimbus storm cells will definitely kill you!
So right! My uncle flew double the regular number of bomber missions in WWII. My father also became a private pilot and through my high school years we had our own plane. I flew often alone with my father to go skiing in CO and my parents would fly everywhere possible instead of drive. My father had a very strict and hard rule. NEVER EVER take even the smallest chance. That was just drummed in by both uncle and father.
Every helo pilot should be IFR qualified if they’re flying an IFR capable bird, in my opinion. Weather can sneak up on you...
“he flew into a patch of very heavy fog...panicked, turned South to try and avoid it....”
Common sense would seem to dictate that the only safe direction to go if you fly into thick fog is up...
Air traffic controllers noted poor visibility around Burbank, just to the north, and Van Nuys, to the northwest. Due to the poor visibility, the pilot could have contacted air traffic controllers and requested to switch to instrument flight rules (IFR), which would have allowed him to navigate through the clouds.
However, when pilots fly under IFR, it can take up a lot of time, especially in Southern California, which has an extremely busy airspace.
Paul Cline, an assistant professor of aviation at the City University of New York, told New York Magazine that flying under IFR could mean you could be in a holding pattern for 'an hour'.
'You’re just one of many waiting in line, and it doesn’t matter if you’re Kobe Bryant,' Cline added.
The aircraft continued under VFR and around 9.40am it turned west to follow US Route 101, the Ventura Highway. At about 9.44am, the helicopter turned again, toward the southeast, and climbed to more than 2,000 feet, in what appeared to be an attempt to put some space between the helicopter and the high terrain.
again...bet he panicked...he was just earlier coming from the south with no problem..hit the fog heading west, and reflectively just turned back south from the fog..
Adoration is one thing, but the people calling him a Hero is ridiculous.
Keep in mind that they flew so they didn’t have to mess with the traffic that us low life people must endure.
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