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In an unprecedented move Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board directly urged six of the largest helicopter manufacturers to install black boxes that provide information in a crash, like the one that killed NBA star Kobe Bryant.
In this Jan. 26 photo, firefighters work the scene of a helicopter crash where former NBA star Kobe Bryant died in Calabasas, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Bryant's Sikorsky S-76 B helicopter went down over Calabasas, Calif., on Jan. 26 in heavy fog, then erupted into flames. All nine passengers on board -- including Bryant's teenage daughter -- were traveling to a youth basketball tournament in Thousand Oaks, Calif., and perished in the accident.
The investigation is ongoing to determine the precise cause, but the chopper did not have a black box.
The NTSB, an investigatory body, delves into safety issues after accidents but does not have the authority to make regulations -- the job of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The FAA has failed to act on an NTSB recommendation that turbine-powered helicopters record data, audio and images during flight, so the safety board instead reached out to Sikorsky, Airbus Helicopters, Bell, Leonardo, MD Helicopters and Robinson.
In this Jan. 27 photo, released by the National Transportation Safety Board, investigator Carol Hogan examines wreckage of a helicopter crash near Calabasas, Calif., that killed former NBA basketball player Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others. (James Anderson/National Transportation Safety Board via AP, File)
The NTSB identified seven crash investigations between 2011 and 2017 in which it said the lack of a recorder slowed its ability to find potential safety issues.
“The more information we have, the better we can understand not only the circumstances of a crash, but what can be done to prevent future accidents,” Dana Schulze, director of aviation safety for the NTSB, told the Associated Press.
The FAA has, in the past, resisted mandating crash-resistant recorder systems because it could not calculate a cost-benefit ratio. But it acknowledges that the box provides crucial information available about the aircraft and the crew in an emergency.
Top lawmakers have fought for stricter regulations and mandates of black boxes. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., urged the FAA to require the devices last year after a helicopter crashed on the roof of a Manhattan skyscraper, killing the pilot. Schumer called the FAA’s inaction “cause for serious concern.”
After Bryant's death, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif, demanded all commercial helicopters be equipped with terrain awareness and warning systems, which his helicopter lacked.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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