Posted on 02/08/2020 6:57:41 AM PST by L.A.Justice
The pilot of the helicopter that crashed and killed Kobe Bryant and eight others was almost out of blinding clouds when he suddenly plunged and crashed into a Southern California hillside, investigators and aviation experts indicated.
Ara Zobayan had told air traffic control he was climbing to 4,000 feet and he rose to 2,300 feet, according to an investigative update released Friday from the National Transportation Safety Board.
The helicopter was just 100 feet from the cloud tops and conceivably would have broken through into clear air in a matter of seconds. Air traffic controllers had advised Zobayan that the cloud tops were at 2,400 feet. Camera footage later reviewed by the NTSB showed nearby clouds at that estimated height.
The NTSB update didn’t make any conclusion about what caused the Jan. 26 crash in Calabasas, northwest of Los Angeles, because the investigation remains underway and a final report isn’t expected for a year or so. However, the update did say there was no sign of mechanical failure based on wreckage examined by experts at the scene.
Investigators also believe that since a tree branch at the crash site was cut, the twin engines were working and the rotors turning at the time of impact. All four of the helicopter's blades had similar damage, the update stated.
An unidentified witness told the NTSB the hillside where the crash occurred was shrouded in mist when he heard the helicopter approaching. It sounded normal and he then saw the blue-and-white aircraft emerge from the fog moving forward and down. It started to roll to the left, and he caught a glimpse of the aircraft’s belly. Within 2 seconds, it slammed into the hillside just below him.
Veteran pilots have suggested that Zobayan became disoriented in the thick atmosphere.
The pilot’s last maneuvers suggest he tried to pop up above the clouds, and he did ascend for perhaps a minute before turning left, said Mike Sagely, a helicopter pilot in the Los Angeles area with 35 years of flying experience.
When pilots inadvertently enter clouds and try to turn instead of still ascending, “probably in the neighborhood of 80 to 90 percent of the time, it’s catastrophic,” Sagely said.
“When he went into the clouds, he had a full-on emergency,” Sagely said.
The helicopter was descending at 4,000 feet per minute and slammed into the hillside at more than 180 mph.
Air safety consultant Kipp Lau said the speed of the aircraft’s descent indicated “you’ve certainly lost control of the aircraft.”
The crash occurred as Bryant and the other passengers were flying from Orange County to Ventura County to attend a girls basketball tournament at Bryant's Mamba Sports Academy. He coached his 13-year-old daughter Gianna's team. She and two teammates died.
A public memorial for Bryant and the other victims is scheduled for Feb. 24 at the Staples Center, where Bryant starred for the Lakers. The date 2/24 corresponds with the No. 24 jersey he wore and the No. 2 worn by Gianna.
Zobayan was a regular pilot for Bryant and the chief pilot for Island Express Helicopters, with more than 8,200 hours of flight time. He was certified to fly solely using instruments — a more difficult rating to attain that allows pilots to fly at night and through clouds when the ground isn't visible — and was a pilot to other celebrities including Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard and Kylie Jenner.
During the flight with Bryant's group, Zobayan did not report any equipment problems and sounded calm while communicating to air traffic controllers. His final transmission said he was going to climb above the clouds. Eight seconds after reaching peak altitude, he started the fateful descent.
Former Island Express pilot Kurt Deetz, who regularly flew Bryant to games at the Staples Center, said reading the NTSB's report reinforced how dangerously fast the helicopter was traveling in conditions that had prompted the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to ground their smaller copters.
“Normally in those conditions, you’re pretty cautious. You’re proceeding slowly,” Deetz said.
The impact tore the helicopter apart. All aboard died from blunt force trauma.
The 50-year-old Zobayan's most recent flight review included training on inadvertently flying into bad weather conditions. It covered how to recover if the aircraft’s nose is pointed too far up or down and what to do if the helicopter banks severely to one side. He earned satisfactory grades in the review, which took place in May 2019.
Deetz said Zobayan previously had told him that he did not have actual experience flying in clouds, despite being certified. Deetz said that isn't uncommon.
Bryant's helicopter did not have a device called the Terrain Awareness and Warning System, known as TAWS, that signals when an aircraft is in danger of hitting ground. The NTSB has recommended the system be mandatory for helicopters, but the Federal Aviation Administration only requires it for air ambulances. U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep. Brad Sherman, both California Democrats, have called for the FAA to mandate the devices.
The others killed included Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, his wife, Keri and daughter Alyssa; Bryant's friend and assistant coach, Christina Mauser; and Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton, 14. A public memorial for the Altobelli family will be held Monday at Angel Stadium in Anaheim.
Lol
Made me chuckle...
Amen brother
Why couldn’t he follow the 101 low Altitude......I don’t know minimum altitude allowedin Los Angeles county?
That is what he was doing until he likely ran into near zero visibility conditions...
The NTSB may have evidence that he flew into the clouds intentionally.
Yes it reads he was following the 101 but for some reason turned into the hills
Ceiling was around 1000 but broken even below that
Visibility was not much ....
I am not a pilot, only a sailor.
I am however, aware of spatial disorientation on a 2d scale.
Try sailing close hauled in heavy fog.
Even when your compass says you are going in a straight line, you would swear you are going around in a big circle.
.
“Almost” Doesn’t Win when Mountainsides and air vehicles are concerned.
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thats exactly what he was doing...then a thick blanket of fog rolled in....he tried to climb out of it, became disoriented, flew into a mountainside...bet the last 5-10 seconds was a real joy looking out of that windshield....man..
Do you know if the aircraft had a cockpit voice recorder?
When I was a crewchief on Huey’s, we were low level fly in the mountains and bumped into a cloud bank at the top of a rising canyon. Everyone except for me was IMC... As we did a return to target maneuver, I was facing straight down and could still see the ground. We weren’t doing no 165kts! I can tell you that. Maybe 60kts.
Do you know if the aircraft had a cockpit voice recorder?
...
The NTSB says there were no recorders and none were required. However, there were digital avionics that may contain useful information. They also recovered personal electronics, like cellphones, that may be of use.
Heard right after the crash, that they were very close to being able to rise above the clouds, but didn't make it.
People keep saying that they shouldn't have flown.
That might be true, but they could have just as easily crashed in a car, if they had chosen that mode oftransportation.
You just never know.
Tragic story either way. And it shows that you can be young, in good health, and have all the money you need, but that life is always fragile, and time is precious.
You never know when your journey here will end. .
Prayers for all the victims and their families.
“It wasn’t his helicopter. He was using a helicopter taxi service.”
This was Kobes’s “personal” helicopter, in all but actual title. He used this helicopter and this pilot every time that he flew.
“except for the circling around Hollywood (which maybe Kobe wanted him to do for the passengers)”
That apparently had something to do with the flight path of LAX or Burbank and waiting for clearance to proceed.
Actually the pilot wasn’t on his usual path because of the heavy cloud cover. The one that he chose instead followed a highway. Which could have worked as a guide if he had been able to see it, but in addition to a low cloud ceiling there was exceptionally heavy fog. There wasn’t just one bad decision going on.
A friend of mine who now flies for a major airline used to work for a private airline that flies celebrities.
When you fly for a major airline they back you up if you decide that it’s too dangerous to take the plane up. No passenger, celebrity or not, is going to overrule the pilot.
It’s a whole different situation with a small private service that caters to the rich. And the smaller the airline the more that they feel the pressure from their elite passengers.
So the helicopter was never used by anyone else?
I would expect preflight activities will be looked into by the NTSB. If they were going to have to drive, a call would have needed to placed by ~7:30 AM so all the passengers could make separate plans. The helicopter took off a bit after 9:00 AM. The drive is about 95 miles between airports. It will be interesting to find out what if any phones calls were made between passengers, Kobe and the pilot.
From what LA media has been reporting since the accident it was for all intents and purposes his helicopter. He used it for his regular commute the way that the rest of us use our cars. They have been running a clip of him telling a reporter that the helicopter was the best way of beating SoCal traffic.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/27/us/kobe-bryant-sikorsky-helicopter.html
History: Mr. Bryant had often flown in the helicopter before. For much of his playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers, he commuted to home games at Staples Center by helicopter. He began calling his ride the “Mamba Chopper.”
For his final game in April 2016, he made the trip in the same S-76B that crashed on Sunday; its fuselage had been decorated for that occasion with a black snakeskin pattern and Mr. Bryant’s personal logo. A former Island Express pilot told The Los Angeles Times that the “limo-esque” helicopter was a favorite of Mr. Bryant.
The aircraft also appeared, in its more usual blue-and-white livery, in photos with other celebrities — including Lorenzo Lamas, the actor turned pilot, and the singer Ashanti — that were posted on social media in recent years.
From 2007 to 2015, the helicopter was owned by the State of Illinois, part of a fleet used to transport government officials. The state sold the helicopter at auction for $515,161, according to a state database cited by The State Journal-Register of Springfield, Ill.
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