Aircraft accident investigations often take years as the players sift through the physical evidence, voice and radar recordings and interview witnesses trying to piece together the cause. The ongoing investigation into last January’s crash of the helicopter (N72EX) carrying basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others, took an interesting twist last week after Island Express Helicopters, the charter company operating the big Sikorsky, individually sued two SoCal Tracon air traffic controllers for wrongful death.
Bryant’s Helicopter Operator Sues FAA Air Traffic Controllers
Key Takeaways:
- Island Express Helicopters has sued two SoCal Tracon air traffic controllers for wrongful death, alleging their negligence directly caused the Kobe Bryant helicopter crash.
- The lawsuit claims Controller A improperly denied flight following services, failed to adequately terminate radar services, and did not brief his replacement (Controller B) about the helicopter's presence, leading the pilot to believe he was still being monitored.
- It further alleges that Controller B struggled to identify the helicopter and made critical, potentially disorienting commands, increasing the pilot's workload and stress in deteriorating weather conditions.
- The suit suggests the pilot was not panicking but may have experienced a disorienting "Coriolis effect" due to an ATC command, leading to the fatal maneuver near the cloud layer.
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