Pilot in Kobe Bryant helicopter crash counselled by FAA after 2015 incident

FILE PHOTO: A portrait of Kobe Bryant stands outside Staples Center before a Los Angeles Lakers home game as mourners paid respects to the late retired basketball star and his daughter Gianna, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 31, 2020. REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon

(Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) faulted the pilot of the helicopter that crashed in January killing basketball great Kobe Bryant and eight others for violating flight rules in a 2015 incident.

The FAA said Ara Zobayan was piloting an AS350 helicopter in May 2015 when he violated rules governing the airspace around Los Angeles International Airport.