Rip

[Fishsizzle]

Love him or hate him, one of the all time greats



https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...licopter-crash

[JRTJH]

Sad and tragic. For me, an even sadder part of the tragedy is the zeal with which it seems all the news media is rushing the story to the air. One news agency has "live coverage" of the situation, the commentator said she "just got a text that.. No, I don't want to report that yet as it's not confirmed" and her counterpart said, "Yes, we shouldn't include family members names until confirmed" and at the same time, the station's scrolling banner was claiming that his 13 year old daughter was reported as being on the helicopter....

It's sad enough that the situation happened, worse (IMHO) that the news media can't wait to confirm facts before airing them to the public without the knowledge that the surviving family has been informed. A total lack or loss of "respect for the survivors".

None of us should be subject to learning of a loved one's death by seeing the corpse on TV or by reading about it in a "news brief"...

[sourdough]

I agree with John. The event is tragic enough. In today's world respect has gone out the window. I remember the world of Walter Cronkite and the way he presented news; daily and tragic. It was worth watching. It wasn't with the "circus" atmosphere of today. News today isn't about "news", it's about "ambulance chasing" and the first one to air the most info, the quickest, with the most morbid details - right or wrong, wins.

[notanlines]

Let’s look at the whole of Kobe Bryant, all the way to Vail, Colorado, before anyone starts with his accomplishments in this thread. Yes, it certainly was a tragedy, and as usual, the news people were all over it like....well, fill in your own description. But this dude was no great American hero, not by a long shot.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by notanlines

Let’s look at the whole of Kobe Bryant, all the way to Vail, Colorado, before anyone starts with his accomplishments in this thread. Yes, it certainly was a tragedy, and as usual, the news people were all over it like....well, fill in your own description. But this dude was no great American hero, not by a long shot.

Whether anyone agrees or disagrees with the characterization of the man, if we take the victims of this tragedy, (his relatives, family and friends) no matter how we feel about him, his accomplishments or his life, they (those left to grieve) deserve more respect than they got from the "news media"....

[Gary R.]

It appears this is what we call in the aviation world as a "Controlled Flight into Terrain", or CFIT. It appears the heli was attempting to climb and clear a mountain in thick fog, but did not gain enough altitude to clear it.

May Kobe, his daughter and the crew rest in peace, and the good Lord offer comfort and solace to those left behind.

[coop341]

This really hits home for me and my family. Yes, Kobe was a superstar basketball player, but I didn’t know him. I was sad for his family when I heard the news of the crash. But a short time later I received a text from a friend of mine, at the same time my son received a phone call telling us that a friend, and my son’s college baseball coach John Altobelli and his daughter Alyssa were also on that flight. It wasn’t until later we heard his wife Keri was also on the aircraft.
My son played baseball for coach John Altobelli in 2005, the 1st season in a long time that OCC (Orange Coast College) made it to the State Final 4. This state final 4 was significant because before the trip to Fresno from Costa Mesa, John Altobelli had mapped out every hospital on the route because Keri was “very” pregnant with Alyssa and he needed to know which exit off the freeway would be the shortest to a hospital!
John Altobelli was instrumental in my sons baseball career. From OCC, my went to Rice University because of a connection John had to that school. Unfortunately, he Was injured the 2 years he was at Rice, but this allowed him to walk-on at USC where the scout for the Seattle Mariners saw him. Because of John Altobelli, my son had every opportunity a person could hope for in sports career.
If any of you “Snowbirds” are in the Tucson AZ area around the
18th - 26th of March I’ll be at the Team Great Britain games for the World Baseball Classic Qualifier Tournament.

[Fishsizzle]

Originally Posted by coop341

This really hits home for me and my family. Yes, Kobe was a superstar basketball player, but I didn’t know him. I was sad for his family when I heard the news of the crash. But a short time later I received a text from a friend of mine, at the same time my son received a phone call telling us that a friend, and my son’s college baseball coach John Altobelli and his daughter Alyssa were also on that flight. It wasn’t until later we heard his wife Keri was also on the aircraft.
My son played baseball for coach John Altobelli in 2005, the 1st season in a long time that OCC (Orange Coast College) made it to the State Final 4. This state final 4 was significant because before the trip to Fresno from Costa Mesa, John Altobelli had mapped out every hospital on the route because Keri was “very” pregnant with Alyssa and he needed to know which exit off the freeway would be the shortest to a hospital!
John Altobelli was instrumental in my sons baseball career. From OCC, my went to Rice University because of a connection John had to that school. Unfortunately, he Was injured the 2 years he was at Rice, but this allowed him to walk-on at USC where the scout for the Seattle Mariners saw him. Because of John Altobelli, my son had every opportunity a person could hope for in sports career.
If any of you “Snowbirds” are in the Tucson AZ area around the
18th - 26th of March I’ll be at the Team Great Britain games for the World Baseball Classic Qualifier Tournament.

ESPN had a very nice article on Coach Altobelli as well. He sounded like an awesome man. Many spoke highly of him.

[coop341]

Thanks for the heads up on the ESPN article, my wife, son & I went straight to the baseball field at OCC when we heard there was a gathering there.

[flybouy]

Certainly a sad/tragic event. The media coverage in my opinion was and is deplorable. Every since 9/11 it seems that the media "rushes" to get the story on no matter the source, or the facts. The ESPN story still has "and his daughters" listed as passengers. Still not corrected. It irks me how many times a day there is "Breaking News" that is hyped up like a nuclear strike is on the way.

While I understand Kobe Bryant may be the most recognized name what about the other 8 souls that perished? Using his name recognition to sensationalize the story is deplorable in my mind.

JMHO

[gearhead]

Altobelli was the subject of a lot of Houston media. He played for University of Houston they say.
Congrats on your son attending Rice. Very exclusive.

[coop341]

Yes, Alto was roommates with David Pierce when he played/went to UofH. When my son went to Rice, David Pierce was the pitching coach, thus the connection that got him to Rice. David Pierce is now the head coach at The University of Texas, no doubt because of the years he was mentored at Rice under then head coach Wayne Graham.

[Bob R]

Originally Posted by Gary R.

It appears this is what we call in the aviation world as a "Controlled Flight into Terrain", or CFIT. It appears the heli was attempting to climb and clear a mountain in thick fog, but did not gain enough altitude to clear it.

May Kobe, his daughter and the crew rest in peace, and the good Lord offer comfort and solace to those left behind.

I read somewhere (credible) that radar had them at 186 kts and a 4000 fpm descent, sounds a lot like spatial disorientation while flying IFR in a fog bank when he should have been VFR or on the ground.

In other news you haven't heard an USAF E-11 crashed in Afghanistan resulting in the loss of 5 crewmen. Much more hero worship worthy than a basketball player.

bob

[flybouy]

I heard the pilot asked for radar following was apparently "scud running". Seems incredible that an IFR ticketed pilot in a fully FIR capable aircraft would do that.

[Bob R]

Originally Posted by flybouy

I heard the pilot asked for radar following was apparently "scud running". Seems incredible that an IFR ticketed pilot in a fully FIR capable aircraft would do that.

Makes you wonder if he had the ticket and didn't stay proficient down in sunny SoCal. Oh well, I guess we will wait for the NTSB to do their thing. At least there is radar data and radio traffic to look at.

bob

[Gary R.]

Hello Bob R, I had not heard about the E-11 crash. The news media are more concerned with that other story now it seems. Those who perished in that crash are true heroes just doing their jobs in service to our country. May God bless them.

[Bob R]

Originally Posted by Gary R.

Hello Bob R, I had not heard about the E-11 crash. The news media are more concerned with that other story now it seems. Those who perished in that crash are true heroes just doing their jobs in service to our country. May God bless them.

The latest news is there were only 2 crewmembers aboard. Not 5 as originally reported.

RIP


Bob