Kobe Bryant's Pilot Disciplined in 2015 for Poor-Visibility Flight Violation

Pilot Ara Zobayan, who was flying the helicopter that crashed Jan. 26 in Calabasas, California, killing himself, Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and six other people, was previously reprimanded by the Federal Aviation Administration for ignoring instructions while flying in poor visibility.

Per Hannah Fry of the Los Angeles Times, Zobayan violated FAA rules in 2015 by crossing into busy airspace after being ordered not to by air traffic control because of visibility issues.

In enforcement action records Fry obtained, Zobayan was "denied clearance to traverse the airspace because weather conditions had reduced visibility below what is known as visual flight rules" in 2015.

Fry noted the FAA faulted Zobayan for a lack of preparation and that he underwent counseling afterward.

On Feb. 7, the National Travel Safety Board's interim report found that photos and video footage from the day of the crash showed "fog and low clouds obscuring the hilltops around the crash site."

The NTSB also said there was no evidence of "catastrophic internal failure" when the helicopter crashed into a hillside. An official report on details of the crash is expected to take months to finalize.