Kobe Bryant helicopter crashed after pilot pushed limits and disregarded training, NTSB says Federal investigators are recommending significant helicopter safety changes — including more pilot training and readily available technology — after concluding the crash that killed basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven others was entirely preventable. In four hours of testimony and deliberations, the National Transportation Safety Board said Island Express charter pilot Ara Zobayan pushed the limits of bad weather flying rules, climbed into clouds, became disoriented about the helicopter’s position relative to the horizon, and made a descending left turn into a cloud-obscured Calabasas, California, hillside last year.