Sad news, Kobe Bryant Dies in Helicopter Crash

[HCM]

Isn't the primary purpose of LEO helicopters to see bad guys and catch speeders? Presumably both require good visual conditions. LE rotor aircraft is way out of my lane but, I can imagine plenty of reasons why a private or charter aircraft would be flying in conditions that would ground LE aircraft from routine activity.

I don't know the pilot, but presumably he/she was qualified and trained to fly that particular helicopter in those weather conditions. The fact that he was flying in clouds/fog, in and of itself, doesn't seem unreasonable or out of the ordinary.

The "Special VFR" clearance he requested and received probably isn't unusual either.

Catch speeders ? No. Seriously ?

“Spotting bad guys” yes in general but with serious safety implications such as maintaining visual to minimize vehicle pursuits, spotting suspects in perimeter situations to avoid foot pursuits etc Not to mention rescue and back up in areas inaccessible to ground vehicles and medical transport in extremis.

LE aircraft are looking air to ground but you still need to see around you for other aircraft and obstructions.

Regardless Life Flight helicopters won’t fly in those conditions either. If it was too dangerous to fly trauma patients with life threatening injuries how does the convenice of sportsball personality compare ?

[TC215]

Isn't the primary purpose of LEO helicopters to see bad guys and catch speeders? Presumably both require good visual conditions. LE rotor aircraft is way out of my lane but, I can imagine plenty of reasons why a private or charter aircraft would be flying in conditions that would ground LE aircraft from routine activity.

I don't know the pilot, but presumably he/she was qualified and trained to fly that particular helicopter in those weather conditions. The fact that he was flying in clouds/fog, in and of itself, doesn't seem unreasonable or out of the ordinary.

The "Special VFR" clearance he requested and received probably isn't unusual either.

I’m sure LAPD/LASD policy is stricter on when they can fly than the FAR’s are.

The pilot had a commercial rotorcraft license with an instrument rating, as well as a rotorcraft instructor certificate.

A Special VFR clearance doesn’t authorize anyone to fly in clouds. It allows pilots to fly when visibility is below the VFR minimum, and specifies that the pilot must remain clear of clouds.

A Special VFR clearance makes sense in certain situations for certain people, and is an invitation for disaster for some other people. I’ve asked for one maybe a handful of times and have been flying my whole life. They are more common is some locales than other places.

Like @GJM said, flying single-pilot in IFR weather conditions is a heavy workload for any pilot, no matter how good you are.

[David S.]

Regardless Life Flight helicopters won’t fly in those conditions either. If it was too dangerous to fly trauma patients with life threatening injuries how does the convenice of sportsball personality compare ?

What makes you say that? Were air ambulance services legally grounded at the time of the accident?

[ChaseN]

Insane amounts of speculation about this so far. That said, fly in a helicopter long enough and it's not if, but when you'll be in a crash - you just hope it's a minor one

sportsball personality

Mistaking athletes and other entertainers for people of importance is a defect in our culture

common mistake of confusing athletes and other entertainers for people of importance

lmao

[HCM]

What makes you say that? Were air ambulance services legally grounded at the time of the accident?

From personal experience the various air ambulance services all have more restrictive weather rules than the FAR.

[SeriousStudent]

On two occasions in the military, I was pulled off a helo manifest, to be put on an earlier stick for the same airframe. Both times the aircraft went in, killing all aboard. A CH-46 in the Med, and a CH-53 in Korea.

I was pulled off another CH-53 flying back to Camp Pendleton from 29 Palms prior to that. The company Gunny demanded some paperwork be done before ENDEX. It went in with the loss of all aboard.

Yeah, I'm pretty freaking superstitious. Even today, when American Airlines puts me on a different flight, I say a prayer for the people on the original airframe. I know it's crazy, but I just can't help it.

[GJM]

Fixed wing and rotorcraft aircraft get safely operated in below basic VFR minimums weather all the time. Investigators will be looking closely at a number of factors here, including as the AK NTSB lead says “the man, the machine, and the environment.”

The man. No idea of his recency of experience, his time in this model, his ability. Surely single pilot in a complex machine in bad weather is difficult. Unsure of the pilot’s ability to make a precautionary landing in a road or in a field.

The machine. No idea if there was a mechanical issue. No idea what avionics he had, how familiar he was with these avionics. Surely they had ground prox but almost certainly it was inhibited because of the altitude they were operating at. Not sure if the helicopter’s equipment and charter certificate allowed for IFR, which would have allowed him to ask for a pop up IFR clearance. Not sure how this helicopter would be landing in a field or on a road, or if it really needed to get to an airport.

The environment. Weather was reported as bad, but we have no idea what the pilot was seeing out the window where he was. Not sure if the passengers were pressuring the pilot to continue. Don’t know if the pilot was trying to impress his important passenger. The complicated airspace certain made things more difficult, and he was waiting a while for a special VFR to land. At least it was day conditions not night.

[AKDoug]

On two occasions in the military, I was pulled off a helo manifest, to be put on an earlier stick for the same airframe. Both times the aircraft went in, killing all aboard. A CH-46 in the Med, and a CH-53 in Korea.

I was pulled off another CH-53 flying back to Camp Pendleton from 29 Palms prior to that. The company Gunny demanded some paperwork be done before ENDEX. It went in with the loss of all aboard.

Yeah, I'm pretty freaking superstitious. Even today, when American Airlines puts me on a different flight, I say a prayer for the people on the original airframe. I know it's crazy, but I just can't help it.

I worked a summer where three aircraft I was recently a passenger in, crashed. One was a fatality. After the third one, I quit flying to the extent that I bought a boat and drove it almost 800 miles after our summer job was over. I've gotten over it, but I still have attended the funerals of several small aircraft pilots I have known.

[Jason M]

From personal experience the various air ambulance services all have more restrictive weather rules than the FAR.

Seconding this! And adding...when a flight request was received, the patient's particulars were not made known to the pilot so as not to possibly bias their "go/no-go" decision.

[Sensei]

On two occasions in the military, I was pulled off a helo manifest, to be put on an earlier stick for the same airframe. Both times the aircraft went in, killing all aboard. A CH-46 in the Med, and a CH-53 in Korea.

I was pulled off another CH-53 flying back to Camp Pendleton from 29 Palms prior to that. The company Gunny demanded some paperwork be done before ENDEX. It went in with the loss of all aboard.

Yeah, I'm pretty freaking superstitious. Even today, when American Airlines puts me on a different flight, I say a prayer for the people on the original airframe. I know it's crazy, but I just can't help it.

Hmmm, remind me to never go flying with you. Actually, I don’t want you within 100 miles of me or my family.