Those families also sued and are part of the settlement that resolves their consolidated lawsuit against Island Express Helicopters, Island Express Holding Corp., and the estate of Ara Zobayan, the pilot who also died in the crash. “The material terms of the settlement and releases are known to the settling parties and include that the terms of the settlement are confidential,” according to a court document filed Tuesday in federal court in Los Angeles.
Ara Zobayan Rumors
The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday that the pilot, Ara Zobayan, was operating under rules that prohibited him from flying into the clouds, but that he had nonetheless continued. Mr. Zobayan had indicated that he was trying to climb above the clouds while he was actually rapidly falling, a sign that he was disoriented, investigators said.
“This weather did not sneak up on the pilot,” Bill English, the lead investigator on the case, told board members. He said the pilot had crashed just minutes away from an airport where he could have landed. Once disoriented, the pilot seemingly did not reference his instruments, did not understand them or did not trust them, investigators said.
National Transportation Safety Board to announce probable cause of Kobe Bryant helicopter crash
The National Transportation Safety Board will formally announce Tuesday the probable cause of the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and eight others. Investigators have been working the case for more than a year … but the NTSB says it will formally announce its findings at a virtual board meeting that will be live-streamed to the public on Feb. 9.
In the days following the crash, the NTSB said preliminary findings showed no outward evidence of engine failure. Months later, NTSB officials said the pilot, Ara Zobayan, may have been disoriented when the aircraft was caught in deep fog.
