NTSB Reveals Kobe Bryant Helicopter Crash Was Due To Pilot Being “Spatially Disoriented”
Just over a year after the fatal crash that took the lives of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna Bryant, and seven other lives, the NTSB has ruled that pilot Ara Zobayan was in violation of federal rules and became spatially disoriented when he was flying in the thick fog.
“The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause of this accident was the pilot’s decision to continue flight under visual flight rules into instrument meteorological conditions which resulted in the pilot spatial disorientation and loss of control, the NTSB said. “Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s likely self-induced pressure and the pilot’s plan continuation bias which adversely affected his decision-making and Island Express Helicopter Inc.’s inadequate review and oversight of its safety management processes.”
Literally the pilot may not know which way is up or down, whether he or she is leaning left or right.”
The New York Times reports that the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said that Zobayan was flying under rules that prohibited him from flying into the clouds, but he continued. Zobayan was attempting to climb above the clouds, however, he was actually descending. The investigators believe the close relationship between Zobayan and Bryant may have led the pilot to continue the flight under pressure to please his client.
“We use the term crash rather than accident,” NTSB Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg said. “An accident (is)just something that’s unforeseen, unpredictable, if you will. Unfortunately this wasn’t.”
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Zobayan was a respected and experienced pilot prior to the incident.