Pictured: All nine victims of helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna as tributes are paid to two teenage girls, a basketball coach and the aircraft’s pilot

Tributes have poured in for the seven other victims killed alongside Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna in Sunday’s tragic helicopter crash in California. 

Among those killed were sports coaches, parents and teenage peers of Bryant’s basketball star daughter – the group are understood to have been travelling to Bryant’s Mamba Academy for a practice session when the helicopter crashed in Calabasas. 

John Altobelli, a baseball coach at Orange Coast College, his wife Keri and their teen daughter Alyssa were killed; and a girls’ basketball coach at Bryant’s academy Christina Mauser.

Sarah Chester and her teen daughter Payton were also killed when the Sikorsky S-76 flew into the hillside and burst into flames.

Pilot Ara Zobayan was also killed. The cause of the crash is under investigation but the control tower at Burbank Airport was contacted by the pilot shortly before 10am local time.

At around 9.40am the helicopter turned south, towards a mountainous area, flight tracker data shows. Five minutes later it hit the hillside at 1700 feet, near the home of Kourtney Kardashian. 

‘He was always good for a laugh. The loss is not mine, but a community really. Ara impacted so many people and only in a positive way. I’m sorry that you never got to meet him. You would’ve loved him, I promise.’

Tributes also poured out for the 56-year-old college baseball coach Altobelli and his wife Keri and daughter Alyssa, who played on the same team as Gianna Bryant.

OCC assistant coach Ron La Ruffa told CNN: ‘It was something John routinely did, flying up with Kobe to attend games with his daughter.’ 

Altobelli had worked at the community college for 27 seasons and last year won the state championship. He was named coach of the year after leading the team to more than 700 victories in four state titles.

Among players he coached during his stellar career were MLB stars Jeff McNeil, of the New York Mets, and Donnie Murphy, formerly of the Chicago Cubs and Florida/Miami Marlins.

‘John meant so much to not only Orange Coast College, but to baseball,’ athletic director of Orange Coast College Jason Kehler said in a statement.

‘He truly personified what it means to be a baseball coach. The passion that he put into the game, but more importantly his athletes, was second to none – he treated them like family.’ 

Christina Mauser, who also worked at the Mamba Academy, was a girls basketball coach at the private elementary Harbor Day School in Newport Beach. Gianna was a pupil at the school.

Her husband, Matt Mauser, founded the Tijuana Dogs, a popular Orange County band. In a Facebook post he said: ‘My kids and I are devastated. We lost our beautiful wife and mom today in a helicopter crash.’ 

It is believed the Mausers had two children together, a son and daughter.

For mother and daughter Sarah and Payton Chester, Todd Schmidt, the school principal at Harbor View Elementary, paid a moving tribute.

Schmidt wrote: ‘As folks mourn the loss of Kobe Bryant, I want to take a moment to remember two gorgeous human beings who were with him, Sarah and Payton Chester…

‘As a principal, we work with some amazing families…the Chesters were one of those…engaged, supportive, encouraging, and full of mischief and laughter…and they had the best kiddos!

‘This family made such a huge impact at Harbor View…they were genuine, kind-hearted, and caring…to the staff, to other families…and yes, especially to me. While the world mourns the loss of a dynamic athlete and humanitarian, I mourn the loss of two people just as important…their impact was just as meaningful, their loss will be just as keenly felt, and our hearts are just as broken.

‘You were both the embodiment of #hvepride, and the world is just a little less without you both in it. May you both Rest In Peace and know the deep impact you had on our lives. You will be so sorely missed.’

The crash occurred around 10am on Sunday morning as the Lakers legend’s helicopter flew into a hillside in Calabasas, California killing nine passengers on board, including Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna.

According to TMZ, they were on their way to Mamba Academy for a basketball practice near the Thousand Oaks area of Los Angeles.

Emergency personnel responded, but none of the nine people on board the aircraft survived, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office said during a press conference on Sunday. 

Flight data shows the aircraft appeared to get into trouble above the LA Zoo where it circled at a very low altitude and air traffic control audio suggests conditions were worsening in the run up to the crash.

Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Josh Rubenstein confirmed their Air Support Division was grounded Sunday, adding: ‘The weather situation did not meet our minimum standards for flying.’

The cause of the crash is under investigation but the control tower at Burbank Airport was contacted by the pilot shortly before 10am local time. At around 9.40am the helicopter turned south, towards a mountainous area, flight tracker data shows. Five minutes later it hit the hillside at 1700 feet, near the home of Kourtney Kardashian. 

In air traffic control audio taken shortly before the crash the pilot is told he is ‘too low’ for radar tracking, although this did not appear to be a sign of distress.

One eyewitness said they ‘didn’t hear any anomalies with the engine’. Scott Daehlin, who was one the first onlookers to contact officials about the crash, told People: ‘It seemed to be running fine.’ He said he believes ‘visibility’ was at fault.

Officials with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department responded to the scene near Las Virgenes Rd and Willow Glen St in Calabasas after a group of mountain bikers spotted the smoke. The crash site is said to be difficult to access and authorities say it could take several days to recover bodies. 

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Image Source:*dailymail.co.uk/

Source:dailymail.co.uk