The federal investigation into the helicopter crash that killed former NBA star Kobe Bryant and eight others has put a renewed spotlight on a long-known danger of flying: Pilots who become disoriented when they can't see their surroundings.
Investigators said Tuesday that pilot Ara Zobayan lost his bearings during the Jan. 26, 2020, flight when he flew fast into low clouds.
National Transportation Safety Board investigators said that when Zobayan told air traffic controllers he was climbing to get above the clouds, he was instead beginning a rapid descent that would end with a crash into a hillside north of Los Angeles.