Five unanswered questions about Kobe Bryant’s death – from ‘illegal’ flight to whether graphic death photos still exist
ON January 26, 2020, the world was stunned to learn that basketball legend Kobe Bryant had been killed in a gruesome helicopter accident.
The Lakers star, 41, and his daughter Gianna, 13, were among seven others who died when their chopper crashed in Calabasas, California, on their way to a basketball game in Newbury Park.
More than two years on from the tragic incident, shocking details about the crash and its immediate aftermath have been revealed.
This week, Kobe’s widow Vanessa was awarded $16million against the Los Angeles County Sheriff and Fire Department for violating her rights when staff shared grisly pictures of her husband’s dead body.
Although the National Transportation Safety Board released their findings about the fatal crash, the lawsuit has reignited debate over the accident.
Here, we take a look at some of the questions surrounding the disaster.
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What caused the crash?
Last year, the NTSB released its findings about the accident and said it was likely that pilot ‘spatial disorientation’ was the cause of the crash.
Spatial disorientation is when a person is unable to determine their position or movement as a result of poor visibility.
According to the report, shortly before the disaster, experienced pilot Ara Zoboyan communicated to air controllers that he was climbing the Sikorsky S-76B helicopter out of heavy clouds.
In reality, however, the aircraft was making a fast descent into a hillside.
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According to an analysis by the Los Angeles Times: “As Zobayan approached the hills of Calabasas at 150 mph, air traffic control radioed him, telling him he was too low to be seen on radar.
“Four minutes later, the pilot advised he was climbing to avoid a cloud layer. He rose roughly 875 feet in less than a minute and then began a descending turn before slamming into the hillside.”
At the time, NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt said: “We will discuss the phenomenon of spatial disorientation, the powerful, misleading sensations that can confuse a pilot conducting a visual flight who loses visual references, and what types of training can be effective in countering this effect.”
There were no signs of engine failure or any other technical malfunction.
Was it an ‘illegal flight’?
It has been reported by air authorities that the pilot was given strict orders not to go into the clouds during the flight.
This was so that the helicopter could sustain an altitude where he would be able to see at least half a mile of the path ahead.
As a result of weather conditions, Zoboyan indicated to authorities that he wanted to go above the cloud tops where he would be able to see miles ahead.
However, to be able to do this, he’d have to climb through 500 feet of clouds, which would impair his vision and go against the rules.
It later emerged that nine months before the incident, Zaboyan had gone through training to prevent the exact scenario that crashed the aircraft.
Island Express Helicopters was only certified for flights to fly under visual flight rules, or VFR — and Zobayan was flying under special visual flight rules, The New York Times reported.
According to reports last year, the pilot put himself under extra pressure to get Kobe to the game because of his high-profile status.
Sumwalt said: “The scenario we believe happened, he is flying along, he realizes that he’s sort of getting boxed in with visibility and then he must have made the decision, ‘You know what, I’m just going to punch up through these clouds and get on top.'”
It was made clear, however, that Kobe himself had not put any pressure on the pilot.
Did a delay contribute to the accident?
According to a report by Business Insider, the pilot was ordered to hold around 11 minutes into the flight as another aircraft was set to land nearby.
The hold, which started around 9:21am, allowed two other aircraft to land.
The pilot then reported back that he would circle over Glendale, a city in California, to await further instructions.
It has been speculated whether the delay may have forced the pilot into an unfamiliar area, as the aircraft had made the exact same journey the day before without delays.
Does a death picture exist?
After the star’s death, reports began to circulate that the responding officers had taken and shared graphic pictures of his dead body.
This led his wife Vanessa to sue the Los Angeles County Sheriff and Fire Department for invasion of privacy and emotional distress.
During the trial, it emerged that an officer had shared the photographs with a bartender at a lounge.
When lawyers questioned the bar staff during his testimony at the trial, he confirmed that he had seen a picture of the athlete and added that “there were just parts”.
According to autopsy reports, Kobe died from blunt trauma with catastrophic brain injuries and suffered a 30 per cent burn to his body.
It also emerged that another deputy had shared the images while playing video games, while another shared them with a complete stranger.
Lawyers also argued that there might still be a photograph of Kobe’s body as an officer had AirDropped them to a firefighter who has still not been identified.
According to court documents, bosses only scrambled to get the pictures destroyed as a means of damage control as they knew there would be an intense backlash.
Although the pictures have not leaked to the general public, Vanessa told the jury that she now lives in constant fear that they would one day surface on social media.
She said: “I want to remember my husband and my daughter the way that they were. I don’t ever want to see these photographs. I have three little girls.”
Christopher Chester, whose wife and daughter also died in the crash and was a co-plaintiff in the case, was awarded $15million.
Does a video exist?
Following the superstar’s death, a number of conspiracies were shared online, leading to a slew of hoaxes.
These included made-up details, false implications, and videos that were taken out of context.
A bogus video released on social media which claimed to show the fatal crash has since been debunked by authorities.
The posts were flagged by Facebook as part of the platform’s efforts to battle misinformation.
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Another bizarre, misleading claim indicated that his death had been planned and was facilitated by Hillary and Bill Clinton.
The claims, pushed by Bishop Larry Gaiters, who has regularly appeared on QAnon podcasts, were shut down and slammed by social media users for causing offense.