EXCLUSIVE: Poignant photos show Kobe Bryant's empty Range Rover sitting next to the cars of his flight companions at private jet terminal after NBA legend took doomed chopper ride

By Dailymail.com Reporter 14:57 EST 03 Feb 2020 , updated 18:52 EST 03 Feb 2020

• Kobe Bryant's car was photographed sitting at Atlantic Aviation, the private jet terminal at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California last Sunday
• The photos were snapped just hours after the NBA legend, his daughter Gianna and seven others died in a helicopter crash on January 26  
• The 41-year-old's car was lined up next to four other luxury vehicles, which belonged to the other passengers who died in the crash  
• Although the cars were high-end, including two Range Rovers, a Tesla, Mercedes and BMW, they were clearly family cars with parking passes, membership decals, and loose paper and coffee cups inside the cars
• In a resurfaced video after Bryant's death, the father-of-four is seen back in December helping out at the scene of a car crash in Newport Beach, before climbing back in his Range Rover 
• The photos emerged after the world mourned the loss of Bryant over the past week, most recently at Sunday's Super Bowl

Poignant photos show Kobe Bryant's empty car sitting in a private jet terminal parking lot just hours after the NBA legend died in a helicopter crash with his daughter and seven others last Sunday.

The 41-year-old's car was lined up next to four other luxury vehicles underneath a darkening sky at Atlantic Aviation, the private jet terminal at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California. 

The other vehicles belonged to John Altobelli, a baseball coach at Orange Coast College, his wife Keri and their daughter Alyssa; basketball coach Christina Mauser; Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton - who all died in the tragic crash, a source exclusively told DailyMail.com. 

The high-end automobiles, including two Range Rovers, a Tesla, Mercedes and BMW, were clearly family cars with faculty parking passes, club membership decals on windshields, and loose paper and coffee cups inside.

The photos emerged after the world mourned the loss of Bryant over the past week, most recently at Sunday's Super Bowl game where a moment of silence was taken to commemorate all victims of the crash, as teams stood on their respective 24-yard lines - in tribute to Bryant's No. 24 jersey.

Bryant and the others had parked their cars at the private terminal and boarded the chartered Sikorsky S-76B, which Bryant frequently flew in, to take them to a basketball tournament in Thousand Oaks. 

A source told DailyMail.com they knew where Bryant's car was parked because they used the private jet terminal several times before. 

They indicated he parked around the back of a hangar that was out of view and next to a runway gate.

An employee at the airport confirmed Bryant and the other passengers of the flight had parked there and these were their cars, the source said. 

On one of the Range Rovers was a Orange Coast College parking sticker, indicating the car belonged to John Altobelli, who was a baseball coach at the college. 

The other Range Rover had a decal for Balboa Bay Club, a luxury sports club, and a Pelican Hill Community sticker - near to where Bryant lived. 

In a resurfaced video after Bryant's death, the father-of-four is seen back in December helping out at the scene of a car crash in Newport Beach, before climbing back in his Range Rover.  

DailyMail.com previously revealed Bryant and his daughter Gianna 'Gigi' had attended an early 7am Catholic mass service hours before they died, both receiving Communion. 

The father and daughter left the church and soon afterwards boarded the helicopter, which took off shortly after 9am and crashed into a hillside near Calabasas around 9.30am.  

Pilot Ara Zobayan circled was relying on his eyesight alone to make out the terrain beneath him, choosing not to utilize what is known in flying as instrument flight rules (IFR), which would have allowed him to navigate through the clouds but which would have taken longer. 

The Sikorsky S-76 helicopter, which Bryant often traveled in, caught fire after it struck a hillside amid heavy fog in the area. 

It was later revealed by authorities that helicopters were grounded that day, as weather 'did not meet our standards.'

Audio revealed that air traffic control taken shortly before the crash told the pilot, Zobayan, was 'too low' for radar tracking.

There are conflicting reports that he was trying to land at Burbank and that he was just held there because of it being busy. 

After around 15 minutes circling above Burbank, he started flying west towards Thousand Oaks, following the highway, but without explanation, dipped south towards Calabasas. 

What exactly caused him to crash remains unconfirmed but 'all the signs' point to the pilot not being able to see where he was going and not using altitude monitoring instruments, the source added, instead relying solely on his eyesight. 

Kurt Deetz, a pilot and former safety manager at the company, said the pilot most likely had little experience in instrumental flying given the company's operating limitations. 

'There is only one way you can be in the clouds, on an IFR (instrument flight rules) flight plan or by accident,' Deetz said.  

The details about the company's lack of certification now prompts questions as to why the pilot didn't file a instrument flight plan that would have enabled him to climb above the fog en route to their destination. 

Sources say it is not unusual for companies, especially in Southern California, to have limitations on certifications for instrument flights given the weather is normally sunny and clear. 

The owner of a different charter company said no local services maintain the certification that enables instrument flights because it means increased training and higher insurance.  

Claudia Lowry, who owns Group 3 Aviation, said local police helicopters don't even maintain the certification. 

'It's not worth it, we don't fly in that kind of weather anyway,' she said. 'And most of the time the weather is good.'  

National Transportation Safety Board officials are currently reviewing the company's certifications.  

Island Express Helicopters refused to answer questions about its certification.