nine people
Currently looks like the pilot and eight passengers. Not confirmed but likely the pilot flew the craft into a mountain in bad weather conditions.
I am mourning nine people equally. Can't say it matters that one was kobe. Bites that at least one child, his thirteen year old daughter, was killed. Perhaps another, there was another basketball player on board and his parent or child was killed, not real clear in the bit I read.
Unless the pilot shouldn't have been flying for some reason, or flying that route, it is just one more air tragedy. They happen, usually nobody's fault. Equipment failure which happens far more than admitted. When in doubt, blame the pilot. Bad information gets pilots in the air when and where they shouldn't be too. And yes, pilot error happens too.
I knew a small aircraft pilot that survived a crash. First the FAA wanted to blame him, then they wanted him to go around telling groups of pilots how he survived the crash. He was the first to survive that type of crash, along with his front seat passenger, so he was the first to be able to fight the automatic "pilot error" claim.
All the deaths are sad. Children bother me most of all so I hope there are no more lives ended when they had barely started.
RIP one and all,
Hu