Los Angeles Police Department have confirmed conditions were not suitable for flying when Kobe Bryant's helicopter crashed.
NBA legend Bryant and daughter Gianna were among nine people killed when his private jet crashed in California on Sunday.
Foggy conditions blanketed the area and a spokesman for the force has confirmed flights from the Air Support division were grounded as a result.
"The weather situation did not meet our minimum standards for flying," spokesman Joe Rubenstein said, reports CBS.
"The fog was enough that we were not flying."
Rubenstein confirmed there must be at least two miles of visibility and an 800-foot cloud ceiling for the department to take flight.
The pilot of the helicopter, a Sikorsky S-76, was navigating through the conditions when the aircraft went down in the hills of Calabasas.
Kurt Deetz flew Bryant for two years up to 2016 and likened the helicopter to a limousine.
Former pilot Deetz said the chopper was in “fantastic” condition and compared it to “a Cadillac, a limousine — it’s limo-esque.”
Air traffic reports show that the chopper circled for more than 15 minutes before its final, fatal descent around 21 miles (35km) from downtown Los Angeles. An investigation is ongoing.
The chopper is said to have caught fire after going down, as emergency services battled in vain to save those on board.
Bryant regularly used his Sikorsky S-76 helicopter to travel to and from matches at the Staples Centre, the LA Lakers' home stadium.
