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Not likely. The copter was in a very fast dive when it crashed. The pilot was a CFII for helicopters. That is a helicopter instrument instructor. While disorientation is a possibility these guys have lots of hours of practice and are very good at going to the gauges. So very unlikely he got disoriented.
The other common theory is the pilot had a medical incident. We will see.
I wouldn't rule out spatial disorientation, or other factors transitioning VFR into IMC. I don't care if he was a CFII, it can happen, and we don't know much actual IFR in IMC he'd done recently.
I don't know if this bit of information has been mentioned earlier in the thread, but yesterday (1/28) at about 6pm CST, I saw a caption on the screen on one of the cable channels (CNN Headline News I think) that I had on in the background with the sound off. The caption started with 'NTSB:' and the rest gave the information that the helicopter failed to clear the top of the mountain by (only) 20-30 feet.
Memorial may be held at Colosseum to hold enough people.
Amazing, you can't get 30 volunteers to help clean up streets in L.A. or march against gang violence, yet rain sleet or snow nearly 80,000 people will eagerly rush to fill a stadium to honor a sports 'hero.'
Just wait until you see the plans they have for the shrine/memorial they are going to build on the hillside, it's going to be Yuge, bigger than the Hollywood sign!
I hear people from all over the world are making the "pilgrimage" to be at the crash site once the authorizes reopen it to the public, that's how much they were effected.
I wouldn't rule out spatial disorientation, or other factors transitioning VFR into IMC. I don't care if he was a CFII, it can happen, and we don't know much actual IFR in IMC he'd done recently.
We are talking a heavy helicopter instrument instructor in the LA basin. Lousy weather around LA is a fact of life. He flew all the time so he virtually certainly had done extensive scud running in the last months and had years of experience at it.
I would also point out it does not appear there were any control changes during the dive. Very improbable if he was disoriented.
I agree you cannot rule out disorientation but it is less likely in my mind than a medical episode.
This is why: Alexis Altobelli, 16, lost both of her parents and her younger sister in this crash. {John, his wife Keri and sister Alyssa, 13} Alexis has one older half brother, JJ, left. I believe he is 27.
IMO, of all of the victim's families, this girl is being left in the worst circumstance of them all. No mother, no father left to care for her. I guess she is lucky she is 16 and not younger and lucky she has her dog to hold onto for comfort when she cries herself to sleep at night......if she can take him with her wherever she ends up as she will likely have to leave her home too.
You should have been in the Los Angeles area, every channel, uninterrupted coverage. You'd think the president died. Their still going on and on about it. and the helicopter.
Kobe is one of the most popular worldwide icons similar to Muhammad Ali or Michael Jackson...the younger generation especially know him more than our President.
Last edited by Fisherman99; 01-29-2020 at 06:16 PM..
Just wait until you see the plans they have for the shrine/memorial they are going to build on the hillside, it's going to be Yuge, bigger than the Hollywood sign!
I hear people from all over the world are making the "pilgrimage" to be at the crash site once the authorizes reopen it to the public, that's how much they were effected.
Felicia Sonmez, a national political reporter for the Washington Post, was vilified online for tweeting about the rape case against Kobe Bryant. Subsequently, she was placed on administrative duty by the newspaper (which has released a statement saying Sonmez is under investigation for possibly violating their newsroom’s social media policy).
In case you forgot the details of the case: In 2003, Bryant’s victim, an employee at a Colorado resort, said she consented to kiss him but not to go further. He went further. She said he choked her during much of the assault. She told police, “Every time I said ‘no,’ he tightened his hold around me.”
I do not know Sonmez, but perhaps she, like me, was upset by seeing a million posts heralding Bryant as a superhero. Sonmez has since deleted the tweets and written: "Any public figure is worth remembering in their totality, even if that public figure [is] beloved and that totality upsetting.”
After the criminal charges against Bryant were dropped in 2004, he, as part of the settlement of a 2005 civil suit, issued a public apology: “Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did.”
So perhaps, just perhaps, he learned something. Which is more than I can say for each and every person attacking Sonmez for telling the truth.
Is the death of Bryant and his daughter a terrible tragedy? Undoubtedly. Nine people died, and in a horrific manner at that. Nine lights have been extinguished. Families are grieving unbearable pain. I feel for all of them.
But we cannot ignore what happened to that victim back in 2003. I bet she’s having a hard time right now, too.
We are talking a heavy helicopter instrument instructor in the LA basin. Lousy weather around LA is a fact of life. He flew all the time so he virtually certainly had done extensive scud running in the last months and had years of experience at it.
I would also point out it does not appear there were any control changes during the dive. Very improbable if he was disoriented.
I agree you cannot rule out disorientation but it is less likely in my mind than a medical episode.
All speculation at this point, but even experienced, and even current pilots with instrument proficiency can still be overcome due to circumstances or other factors. Helos are a very different animal from fixed wing, and I don't pretend to be knowledgeable with them other than saying they are different. Again, not saying this was the cause, but I wouldn't rule it out, but I wouldn't rule anything out at this point.
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