Investigators Report Kobe Bryant's Helicopter Crashed Into The Ground 'At High Speed'

Jan 29, 2020 by apost team

Basketball star Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna passed away over the weekend in a tragic helicopter accident. 7 other people on board including the pilot did not survive the crash either. The National Transportation Safety Board has reportedly revealed that Kobe's helicopter crashed at a high speed. 

Kobe Bryant owned his own private Sikorsky S-76 helicopter according to Entertainment Tonight. The NBA legend used helicopter transportation so he could beat L.A. traffic and spend more time with his family. 

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the basketball star was traveling on an S-76 helicopter Sunday morning when it crashed into a hillside in Calabasas, California, as per the Washington Post. Bryant was traveling with his 13-year-old daughter Giana “GiGi” Bryant,  another six passengers, and a pilot. There were no survivors.

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The NTSB has been updating its social media feed with pictures and official information on the crash. A member of the board said yesterday at a press conference as per CNN that the helicopter dropped more than 2,000 feet a minute and was in one piece until it crashed into the hillside. 

Jennifer Homendy, a member of the NTSB, said: "The descent rate for the helicopter was over 2,000 feet a minute, so we know that this was a high energy impact crash. This is a pretty steep descent at high speed. So it wouldn't be a normal landing speed."

Homendy also confirms that the preliminary information says "the helicopter was in one piece when it impacted the terrain." Before the crash, the pilot of chopper, Ara Zobayan, told air traffic control that he was climbing to avoid a cloud layer. 

The visibility that day was extremely low. However, Kobe's pilot had received special permission to fly in poor conditions. However, the Los Angeles Police Department had even grounded its helicopters that day. Zobayan received SVFR clearance -- or special visual flight rules clearance so he could fly in the foggy weather. 

The NTSB is still working toward finding out what caused the deadly crash to occur.  

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