When the helicopter carrying basketball legend Kobe Bryant crashed into a fogbound mountainside, killing all nine people on board, the pilot who was struggling to avoid the clouds did not have the legal authority to navigate with his instruments because the aircraft owner did not have the necessary federal certification, according to three sources familiar with the charter helicopter company’s operations.

Island Express Helicopters, which owned the craft, had an operating certification that limited its pilots to flying under what are known as visual flight rules (VFR), with at least three miles of visibility and a cloud ceiling no lower than 1,000 feet above the ground. The company did not have certification for its pilots to fly with instruments (dashboard indicators of altitude, speed etc.), said Kurt Deetz, a pilot and former safety manager at the company.

The helicopter had sophisticated instruments on board that the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has approved for instrument flight, and the pilot, Ara Zobayan, was certified to fly by them. But because of limitations on how the company is approved by the FAA to operate when carrying passengers for hire, he was required to fly only in conditions of sufficient visibility to navigate visually.

The limitations on Island Express’ operations are not unusual. Another operator at Van Nuys Airport, where the company is based, said none of the charter operators there have gone to the trouble and expense of winning certification for instrument flight, in part because it is normally so easy to navigate at low altitude in Southern California, with its easy-to-follow freeways and sunny weather.

But the new details about Island Express’ FAA certification shed light on the question of why the pilot did not file an instrument flight plan that would have allowed him to climb well above the fog-shrouded hills and head to Camarillo Airport, not far from the basketball tournament where Bryant and his party were headed.

Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures NBA legend Kobe Bryant died, aged 41, in a tragic helicopter crash in Calabasas, California on Sunday 26 January 2020. Four other passengers were killed in the crash, the LA County Sherrif Department have confirmed. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant dunking the ball at his Lower Merion, Pa. high school gym during a practice in 1996. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant, 17, smiles as he holds his Los Angeles Lakers jersey in 1996. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant drives to the basket during a Lakers pre-season victory over the Dallas Mavericks in 1996. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Waiting to appear in his first-ever NBA game in 1996. He was the NBA's youngest ever player at the time. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant winning the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) He remains the the youngest ever winner. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Shaquille O'Neal puts his arms around teammates, Elden Campbell and Kobe Bryant as they return to play the Houston Rockets in 1999. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) The arrival of Phil Jackson kick-started the Lakers to true contention. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant's image overlooks the Staples Center arena after the Lakers won the NBA Championship against the Indiana Pacers in 2000. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant celebrates from atop a doubledecker bus during the Lakers victory parade in 2000. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant jumps over a row of fans after saving the ball from going out of bounds in the second half of the Lakers 107-101 win over the Houston Rockets in 2001. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant watching the clock run down in the final seconds of their Western Conference semi-final against the San Antonio Spurs in 2002. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant would form one of the most potent one-two punches in NBA history alongside Shaquille O'Neal, winning three titles in a row from 2000 to 2002. The pair later publicly feuded and O'Neal left. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Sitting next to his MVP trophy he received at the 51st NBA All-Star game in 2002. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant was accused of sexual assault in 2003. The charges were later dropped and a civil suit was settled out of court. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Braynt changed from the No 8 to the No 24 in 2006. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant goes up for a shot between the Boston Celtics' Paul Pierce, left, and Al Jefferson in 2006. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant attends a gathering with his fans in Shanghai during his Supernatural Asia Tour 2007. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant was named the league MVP in the 2007-08 season. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Winning his first Olympic gold medals as part of Team USA in 2008. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant jumps for a rebound during a playoff game in 2009. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Celebrating the 2008-09 title win, a series where he was named Finals MVP. AFP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) He celebrated the Lakers 2009 victory with his family. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) US President Barack Obama shares a laugh with Kobe Bryant during a ceremony honoring the 2009 NBA basketball champions at the White House. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant smiles as he carries his daughter Gianna after the Lakers 2009 victory parade. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Most valuable players Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal from the West team up the trophy at the NBA All-Star in 2009. EPA Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Winning the title for the second year in a row, Bryant was again named Finals MVP after an epic seven-game series against the Boston Celtics. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Smiling with daughters Gianna and Natalia with the MVP Trophy after his team defeated the Boston Celtics in 2010. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant slam dunks against the Sacramento Kings in 2011. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Playing with a ball during a sponsor's appearance in Milan in 2011. He moved to Italy when he was six, after his father retired from NBA to play basketball at a lower level. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Dwight Howard, and Steve Nash, arrived in 2012 but the pair struggled to gel and although the team made the play-offs they lost in the first round. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant dunking the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the Western Conference Semifinals in 2012. EPA Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant went to support the US women's side at the 2012 Olympics Games against France, the day before his own final. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant went on to win his second Olympic gold at the London Games. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant is injured in one of the last games of 2012-13, the first of a series of injuries that saw his powers fade dramatically in his final three seasons. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Daughter Natalia sitting on his shoulders during a practice session for the NBA All-Star basketball game in 2013. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Speaking after announcing retirement in December 2015. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Bryant in his 18th and final All-Star game in Toronto. He was named starter for every appearance, a record. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Taking his final ever shot - a free throw - late in the fourth quarter to score his 60th point against the Utah Jazz and his last at Staples Center. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Balloons and confetti rain on the court following Kobe Bryant's final game as a Laker in 2016. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant retires after 20 years with the LA Lakers - the only player in NBA history to spend that long with the same franchise. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant watches a tribute at AT&T Center in 2016. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) With his family and city officials Bryant was honored at a council meeting with Kobe Bryant Day in 2016. With the date commemorating the 2 numbers, 8 and 24, he wore on his Lakers jersey AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) in Haikou in China's southern Hainan province on September 12, In 2017 he attended basketball teaching activities, as part of an announcement that China's first NBA basketball school was to be opened. He believed it would improve the game in the country. AFP via Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Both Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers jerseys, number 8 and 24, were are retired in 2017. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Kobe Bryant with the Best Animated Short Film Award for "Dear Basketball" in 2018. Reuters Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) With daughter Gianna at the US national championships swimming meet in 2018. He regularly took his children to watch other sporting events. AP Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) As a World Cup ambassador, Kobe Bryant, was part of the Basketball World Cup draw in Shenzhen in 2019. Getty Kobe Bryant: Career in pictures Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) Present at the finals he presented the 2019 World Cup MVP to Spain's Ricky Rubio Getty

Island Express did not respond to questions about the certification, which was earlier reported on by Forbes.

In his last message before the crash, Mr Zobayan, who was navigating through the hills near Calabasas, California, told air traffic control he was climbing to avoid a cloud layer. Witnesses on the ground reported seeing the helicopter flying through a layer of clouds and fog seconds before it crashed.

“There is only one way you can be in the clouds, on an IFR flight plan or by accident,” said Mr Deetz, referring to flight plans filed under what are known as instrument flight rules.

None of the local charter companies maintain certification that allows them to fly using instruments, said Claudia Lowry, who owns Group 3 Aviation, a charter service and flight school based at the same airport in Van Nuys as Island Express. IFR certification would mean drastically increased training, equipment and insurance requirements. Even local police helicopters do not maintain it, she said.

“It’s not worth it, we don’t fly in that kind of weather anyway,” Ms Lowry said. “And most of the time the weather is good.”

Another source familiar with the matter confirmed that Island Express did not have the FAA certification that would have been needed to fly under instrument conditions.

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) officials said they were reviewing the company’s certifications and would not comment on their contents until the review was complete.

NTSB investigators said they were continuing to look at a range of possible factors in the crash, including the possibility of a mechanical failure. “We take a broad look at everything in an investigation – man, machine and the environment,” Jennifer Homendy, an NTSB board member, said on Monday. “And weather is just a small portion of that.”

The helicopter left John Wayne Airport in Orange County at just after 9am Sunday on an overcast day. There, farther south from the crash site, the visibility was 4 miles, well within visual flight conditions. But as they headed north, they encountered a lowering cloud deck and visibility down to two-and-a-half miles. When he reached Burbank, still well short of his destination, the pilot asked for a special visual flight rules clearance that would allow him to fly at visibility less than the three miles normally required for visual flight, so long as the aircraft remained clear of clouds, through the controlled airspace around Burbank and Van Nuys.

Once he cleared Van Nuys and turned south and west toward Calabasas, the pilot reported that visibility was sufficient to meet the legal requirements for visual flight – but as he went on, the weather appears to have worsened.​

Reports from people on the ground suggest that conditions may have deteriorated further when the helicopter crossed the mountains on the western edge of the San Fernando Valley. The clouds sat about 300 feet off the ground, witnesses near the crash scene said.

Mr Zobayan was flying a Sikorski S-76B, which is a large and powerful helicopter often used as a luxury ride for VIPs. It is also used extensively for shuttling crews on offshore oil rigs and carrying emergency medical crews. It has a good safety record, in part because it has two engines that allow it to keep flying even if one fails, and a backup hydraulic system. It also has controls for an optional second pilot.

The aircraft is equipped for instrument flying for operators licensed to do so – even with a solo pilot.

Island Express and nearly all other companies in the region fly the S-76B almost exclusively with a single pilot, according to operators there. Mr Deetz said it was rarely necessary to have a second pilot; in fact, he said, two pilots sometimes get in each other’s way. Only a few safety-conscious clients have in the past asked for two pilots, Mr Deetz said, and Bryant never did.

Other operators have cited the lower cost of flying with a single pilot.

But flying with one pilot is risky, said Doug Solbrekken, who flew the same Sikorsky for decades in mountainous British Columbia, Canada, and instructed pilots in terrain avoidance.

“This is a big, fast aircraft, almost like a jet,” he said in an interview. “If you get into poor conditions, the workload for one pilot can be too high.”