Lorenzo Lamas Defends Kobe Bryant’s Pilot Ara Zobayan

On Tuesday, “Extra’s” Billy Bush spoke to actor Lorenzo Lamas, who was friends with Ara Zobayan, the pilot who was flying Kobe Bryant’s helicopter when it went down.

In addition to being a pilot, Zobayan was also a flight instructor who mentored Lamas. He said, “He was a friend, a very dear friend. I’ve known Ara for 20 years… We started flying together back in early 2000. There is a long history of friendship between the two of us, and that’s what makes this so difficult to deal with.”

Lamas felt the need to speak up for Ara, pointing out, “Every single person in aviation, every pilot that came into contact with him, would attest to his abilities, to his ethics, to his knowledge. He was just an incredible pilot. It’s a very difficult situation, a very tough blow for all of us in the aviation community to deal with.”

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