Kobe Bryant's helicopter exploded into a fireball after plunging 1,000 feet into a hillside and crashing in California.
Devastating images have emerged of the aircraft ablaze following the death of NBA legend Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others.
An accident investigator confirmed pilot Ara Zobayan had told air traffic controllers he was climbing to avoid a cloud layer, and reached a height of 2,300 feet moments before the crash.
Photos taken in the immediate aftermath of the tragic crash by a mountain biker show the flaming wreckage of the helicopter, with the aircraft almost unrecognisable
The biker described seeing human body parts spread across the terrain as thick black smoke billowed into the sky, with thick debris on the hillside.
Los Angeles County Fire Department crew recovered three bodies on Sunday and resumed the effort on Monday.
It has also been confirmed by accident investigators National Transportation Safety Board that there was no black box on board the helicopter.
The recording device was not required for the aircraft with an iPad was used for flight itinerary instead.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation with NTSB board member Jennifer Homendy calling the scene "pretty devastating".
has shown a helicopter circling 15 minutes before the crash.
The flight path of Bryant's Sikorsky S-76 helicopter, published by airline tracking website flightradar24.com, appeared to be in the same location at that same time before it went down.
LAPD confirmed earlier this week that the conditions were unsuitable for flying and their own helicopters had been grounded due to fog.
The helicopter awaited clearance from air traffic controllers and was forced to circle for 12 minutes.
Chilling footage heard pilot Ara Zobayan asking for radar assistance before being told he was too low for the radar to be used effectively.
He confirmed he was climbing to avoid the cloud layer and data indicates the helicopter climbed to 2,300 feet before the crash.
On the helicopter from Santa Ana in Orange County, was Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna.
They were joined by Gianna's friend Alyssa Altobelli and her parents John and Keri, and Sarah and Payton Chester.
Chrstina Mauser, a basketball coach at Mamba Sports Academy where Gianna played, was also on board, along with pilot Ara Zobayan.
