28012020

How Kobe Bryant's doomed
helicopter crashed
Yesterday morning saw the
identities of the nine victims
of Kobe Bryant’s helicopter
crash fully identified, with the
earliest reports only just
confirming the death of the
former LA Laker and his 13-
year-old daughter, Gianna.
The aircraft, a Sikorsky S-
76B, had a capacity of 12
people in total, yet on this
tragic occasion it housed eight
passengers plus the pilot.
According to information
published in the Mirror, the
identities of those other
passengers are now public.
In addition to Bryant and
his daughter, the accident
claimed the life of Alyssa
Altobelli, a friend of Gianna,
and her parents Keri and
John, with the latter also a
Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2020 — 47
Nine victims of Kobe Bryant’s helicopter crash revealed
coach of a baseball team at
Orange Coast College.
Ara Zobayan has been
identified as the pilot who was
in control of the helicopter
when it crashed into the
Calabasas mountains.
Along with these names,
Christina Mauser a 38-yearold
coach at the Mamba
Sports Academy also lost her
life, whilst mother and
daughter, Sarah and Payton
Chester were on board too.
‘RIP KOBE’
NBA stars write Kobe Bryant’s name
on their sneakers
Emotional tribute to LA Lakers legend after his death
The helicopter carrying Kobe Bryant,
his daughter, Gianna, and seven
others that crashed into a rugged
hillside outside Los Angeles was flying in
foggy conditions considered dangerous
enough that local police agencies
grounded their choppers.
Bryant’s helicopter left Santa Ana in
Orange County, south of Los Angeles,
shortly after 9am, a time when conditions
were not suitable for flying, according to
the Los Angeles Police Department.
There was an overcast at 1,300 feet and
visibility of about five miles. The pilot, who
was named as Ara Zobayan was flying
under visual flight rules (VFR), meaning
that he was relying on his ability to see the
terrain below him.
Around 9.20am, the helicopter circled
for about 15 minutes just east of Interstate
5, near Glendale.
Air traffic controllers (ATC) held up the
helicopter for other aircraft for about 11
minutes, before clearing the Sikorsky S-
76 to proceed north along Interstate 5
through Burbank’s airspace.
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
Kobe Bryant’s
death is shocking
—NBBF
The leadership of the Nigeria
Basketball Federation is in shock
following the death of basketball legend
and multiple NBA winner, Kobe Bryant.
The NBBF board reacting to the sad news
that filtered in on Sunday night described
the death as shocking which has thrown
the global basketball family into mourning.
Speaking through it’s President, Engr
Musa Kida he described Kobe Bryant as
not just a basketball legend but a global
icon who took the world by storm and left
his mark on the sand of time.
He described the the unfortunate
incident involving the basketball star
alongside his daughter Gianna and seven
others who died in the fatal helicopter crash
as one that will leave a dent on the sporting
community for ever.
We join the world to mourn a man that
has given everything to entertain the world
through basketball.
“We commiserate with his immediate
family, the Los Angeles Lakers franchise
where he played his entire NBA career, the
entire NBA management and people all
over the world who has been affected by
this unfortunate incident.”
Speaking further, Kida described Kobe
Bryant as an inspiration to many kids in
Nigeria who wanted to take up basketball
as a profession.
We are going to miss him. We pray that
his soul and the eight others find eternal
rest.
Apart from being an 18-time All-Star
with five NBA championships he was also
a two-time Olympic gold medalist with
Team USA.
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.
In air traffic control audio which was
recorded shortly before the crash, the pilot of
the former Lakers star’s helicopter is told by
a controller that ‘you’re still too low level’ to
be tracked by radar.
This did not appear to be a sign of distress,
because the helicopter was actually
ascending at the time and the controller was
referring to the technical difficulty with
reading data rather than warning of an
imminent crash.
LeBron James in tears!
LeBron James wept on the
tarmac at Los Angeles
International Airport yesterday
after the LA Lakers learned on a
flight home that their former
teammate Kobe Bryant had died in
a helicopter crash at the age of 41.
The Lakers were returning from
a road game in Philadelphia when
they received word of the NBA
legend’s death and the grieving
players were visibly shocked and
upset when they landed at LAX.
Coach Frank Vogel had
addressed his players in mid-air
after the news of Bryant’s death -
less than four years after the end of
his glittering 20-year Lakers career - began to filter through.
In a poignant coincidence, James had exchanged emotional
tributes with Bryant less than 24 hours earlier after passing his NBA
points tally during the game in Philadelphia on Saturday.
LeBron, 35, moved into
third place in the NBA alltime
rankings after beating
Bryant’s total of 33,643, and
hailed the older man as an
‘inspiration’ in a warm
tribute.
Bryant praised LeBron in
response for ‘continuing to
take the game forward’,
signing off with the words
‘much respect my brother’ in
what proved to be his last
tweet.
After learning of Bryant’s
death yesterday, an
emotional LeBron hugged a
woman on the LAX tarmac
and rested his head on
another man’s shoulder
before walking off to wipe
away his tears.
Jordan: Kobe was my
fierce competitor
Michael Jordan has joined in the
tributes being sent to the friends
and family of Kobe Bryant.
The latter sadly passed away on
Sunday evening, along with his
daughter, Gianna, in a terrible
helicopter accident in California
“I’m in shock over the tragic news of
Kobe’s and Gianna’s passing,”
Jordan wrote in a statment.
“Words can’t describe the pain I’m
feeling.
“I loved Kobe - he was like a little
brother to me.
“We used to talk often, and I will miss
those conversations very much.
NBA stars scribbled Kobe Bryant’s
name on to their sneakers in a
series of emotional tributes to the Los
Angeles Lakers legend after his shock
death.
The world has stunned to learn of
Bryant’s death, aged 41, in a helicopter
crash in Calabasas, California on
Sunday night.
Kobe died alongside his 13-year-old
daughter, herself a basketball prodigy,
and seven others.
Despite the heartbreaking news, the
NBA carried on as planned, with eight
matches player later in the day - as
players, coaches and fans all paid their
respects.
In the build-up to the evening’s games,
the Staples Center - home of the Lakers
which was hosting the Grammys on
Sunday night - was flooded with
mourning fans.
As matches tipped off across the
country, it seemed every player and every
Sports stars, including
Barcelona’s Lionel Messi,
Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo and
Brazilian Neymar, took to social
media on Monday to pay tribute to
Kobe Bryant following his death in a
helicopter crash.
Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter
Gianna and seven other people died
in the crash in Calabasas, California.
Paris Saint-Germain forward
Neymar became aware of Bryant’s
death during half-time in his side’s 2-
0 win at Lille, and then dedicated his
second half goal to the NBA player
by holding up two fingers on one hand
and four on the other in reference to
Bryant’s number 24 LA Lakers shirt.
“It’s deeply saddening for the world
of sport and for all of us,” said
team had their own tribute.
In the Toronto Raptors’ game against the San
Antonio Spurs, both teams picked up an
intentional 24-second shot violation with the
opening possessions of the game - a nod to one
of Bryant’s two retired numbers, 8 and 24.
During the Houston Rockets’ game against the
Denver Nuggets, 7ft tough-guy Tyson Chandler
cried along with his team-mates during a tribute
to Kobe.
But there’s one thing seemingly every player
did - and that was write Kobe’s name on their
sneakers before tip-off.
Messages included, “Kobe Bryant, 8 + 24,
RIP”, from Montrezl Harrell.
KOBE BRYANT: Messi, Ronaldo,
Neymar pay tributes
“He was a fierce competitor, one of the
greats of the game and a creative force.
“Kobe was also an amazing dad who
loved his family deeply - and took great
pride in his daughter’s love for the game
of basketball.
“Yvette joins me in sending my deepest
condolences to Vanessa, the Lakers
organisation and basketball fans around
the world.”
Neymar to Canal+ after the
win, which put PSG 10 points
clear at the top of the league.
“Not just for basketball fans,
but for everything he did for
sport.”
He then posted a tribute on
Instagram, thanking Bryant for
all he did for sport.
Fellow footballer Messi said on
Instagram that he was “lost for
words” before adding that Bryant
was “a genius” with whom he had
shared good times with.
Ronaldo meanwhile posted a
black and white image on his
Instagram accompanied by the
message: “So sad to hear the
heartbreaking news of the
deaths of Kobe and his daughter
Gianna. Kobe was a true
legend and inspiration to so
many. Sending my
condolences to his family and
friends and the families of all
who lost their lives in the crash.
RIP Legend.”
Manchester United’s
Marcus Rashford described
Bryant as “a true inspiration
in the sporting industry”,
Rafael Nadal wore a Los
Angeles Lakers hat in his postmatch
interview in honour of
Bryant.
Rafael Nadal has just beaten
Nick Kyrgios to reach the
Australian Open quarterfinals.
The world number one
had this to say about Kobe
Bryant following his victory: