Kobe Bryant 1978-2020

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Unbelievable news that Kobe is one of the five killed in a California helicopter crash. Brother texted me and I happened to flip past the Pro Bowlers announcers breaking it.

[SeaBass]

It doesn't feel real. Sad day for sports. Feel for his family.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

It doesn't feel real is right. I don't usually feel much attachment to famous deaths but there's no other way to put it.

[nodakfan17]

ABC News interrupted their coverage of the Pro Bowl for a live news report and mentioned they thought all 4 of Kobe’s daughters were with him. If that’s true, it just went from really sad to a tragedy. I can’t imagine the pain for those close to the family.

[Fear The Chorizo]

It doesn't feel real. Sad day for sports. Feel for his family.

 

Hoping his daughters or wife arent among the others killed. Just terrible that 5 people lost their lives no matter who they were, but it would be horrible if multiple family members died. I'm guessing Kobe didnt just get on chopper rides with random people, so it's likely the others killed have some sort of familial or business relationships with him if there were more passengers than pilot/crew.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

ABC pulled the daughters report. But now TMZ reporting one of them was, his oldest.

[Fear The Chorizo]

Yes, hearing from many outlets that his oldest daughter was on the flight with him heading to a bball practice/camp. Appears that the pilot, another adult and their early teen child headed to the same activity were also onboard.

 

Just tragic

[stoutdude04]

That's awful news. Especially for the children. So sad.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Horrific but in the very least he and his daughter were together and comforting each other in the end. Just a terrible story.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Second oldest daughter, to correct my earlier post.

[stoutdude04]

Second oldest daughter, to correct my earlier post.

 

I was just reading about her yesterday. Apparently she was turning into quite the prep basketball star. Tragic...

[LouisEly]

Wow. The day after LeBron passed him on the all-time scoring list.

[brewcrewdue80]

Im pretty much speechless. Terrible for Basketball fans. Terrible included his daughter. The parent and teammate. The family. That team. The pilot. Way too soon for their passing. Just shocked.

[RollieTime]

Just awful news with the passing of Kobe and his daughter Gianna.

 

Police are not releasing any names involved in this incident as of yet. But they did confirm that there are actually NINE deceased in the helicopter crash.

 

Just a tragic situation that continues to get worse as the day goes on.

[GAME05]

I'm especially sad for the two girls who were so young.

[stalton]

I never rooted for the Lakers but always had a deep admiration for what he did for the game. Itll be interesting to hear the details of the crash as it comes available.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Based on the conditions and air traffic audio, it seems somewhat easy to piece together at this point. Very heavy fog, so much so that air support in LA was grounded. They circled around the zoo for 15 minutes at 875 feet, waiting for fog to break. Seems as thought the pilot gets lost at the end of that and realized too late that he's gone south into a mountainous region.

 

Elevation goes up to 2k feet in a matter of minutes and they strike a hillside at 1700 feet. There will be gaps to fill in, but it seems extremely likely it was pilot error due to very poor conditions.

 

They have also raised the death toll to nine.

 

I sincerely hope the passengers were clueless and just talking to each other in the back or something.

[AZBrewCrew]

Based on the conditions and air traffic audio, it seems somewhat easy to piece together at this point. Very heavy fog, so much so that air support in LA was grounded. They circled around the zoo for 15 minutes at 875 feet, waiting for fog to break. Seems as thought the pilot gets lost at the end of that and realized too late that he's gone south into a mountainous region.

 

Elevation goes up to 2k feet in a matter of minutes and they strike a hillside at 1700 feet. There will be gaps to fill in, but it seems extremely likely it was pilot error due to very poor conditions.

 

They have also raised the death toll to nine.

 

I sincerely hope the passengers were clueless and just talking to each other in the back or something.

 

This. It sounds like this was a very unfortunate case of CFIT and “get-there-itis”. The pilot asked for flight following right before they lost radar contact - most likely entered into IMC and realized he was in trouble

 

 

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[MrTPlush]

While a lot will be discovered some things will likely never be known. In many cases a high profile passenger/customer can pressure the pilot to take them in conditions they would not normally fly in. Sometimes pilots will pressure themselves trying to deliver...who wants to let down Kobe Bryant and make him late? I know someone who pilots a private jet for high profile celebrities and he said it is a stressful business. A private plane/chopper is an elite thing and the customer expects elite service. They certainly expect to get to their destination on time without any problems. Typically they are not very understanding regardless of the reason. Bryant seemed kind of laid back, but who knows. Regardless the pressure to get Bryant to his destination on time was likely a key factor.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

They got special clearance to fly, which is a shame and lends itself to get-there-itis. The fog doesn't care who's on the plane. If you need special clearance for weather you should probably just wait.

[RobDeer 45]

I was floored by the news and it just kept getting worse, as we found out his daughter was with him. A week before, I had just watched a short video on Twitter, of Kobe and his daughter discussing a play at a basketball game. It was cool to see. I hadn't really seen anything with him and his daughter, up that point. At least not for a long time. Tragic, for them, their families, and the other families involved.

[MrTPlush]

As tragic as it is at least the other Bryant children have their mother. I believe the Altobelli's have a 16 year old daughter and adult son that now have neither parent all while losing their sister too. A very tough situation for multiple families.

[FVBrewerFan]

Based on the conditions and air traffic audio, it seems somewhat easy to piece together at this point. Very heavy fog, so much so that air support in LA was grounded. They circled around the zoo for 15 minutes at 875 feet, waiting for fog to break. Seems as thought the pilot gets lost at the end of that and realized too late that he's gone south into a mountainous region.

 

Elevation goes up to 2k feet in a matter of minutes and they strike a hillside at 1700 feet. There will be gaps to fill in, but it seems extremely likely it was pilot error due to very poor conditions.

 

They have also raised the death toll to nine.

 

I sincerely hope the passengers were clueless and just talking to each other in the back or something.

 

Yea, I'll try to keep it simple and not technical. 90% sure pilot was flying vfr (essentially looking out the window) and changed to instrument too late. Appears he should have been on ifr from the beginning. Very difficult to transition like that flying into clouds and terrain.

[adambr2]

They got special clearance to fly, which is a shame and lends itself to get-there-itis. The fog doesn't care who's on the plane. If you need special clearance for weather you should probably just wait.

 

If nothing else it should serve as a sobering reminder to all of us.

 

Whether it be flying in bad weather, rushing to get to work in time, trying to reply to that text while driving, taking an unnecessary risk at work, driving drunk...

 

It's never worth your life. Ever. Just wait.

[RollieTime]

They got special clearance to fly, which is a shame and lends itself to get-there-itis. The fog doesn't care who's on the plane. If you need special clearance for weather you should probably just wait.

 

If nothing else it should serve as a sobering reminder to all of us.

 

Whether it be flying in bad weather, rushing to get to work in time, trying to reply to that text while driving, taking an unnecessary risk at work, driving drunk...

 

It's never worth your life. Ever. Just wait.

 

Exactly this. I think this will be something that people will always keep in mind, particularly celebrities with planes or helicopters, that may be itching to get somewhere even if the weather is poor. Hopefully people look at this tragedy as something that can happen to anyone and that it is just not worth the risk.

 

Sad sad situation all around.