The National Transportation Safety Board says the pilot involved in the crash that killed Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and six other passengers last year had become “spatially disoriented” when he flew into thick clouds.
The pilot, Ara Zobayan, was prohibited by federal regulations from penetrating the clouds, but he did so anyway. He told air traffic controllers that he was about to rise above the clouds, but instead he crashed into the hillside below. Zobayan was also killed in the crash on Jan. 26, 2020.
The board also discussed the role that “self-induced pressure” played in the crash. There was no evidence, said NTSB investigator Dujuan Sevillian, that the client, helicopter operator Island Express or the air charter broker placed pressure on pilot. Nonetheless, the pilot may have put pressure on himself to fly an important client.
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