The family of Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, a Thai businessman and former Leicester City owner who died in a helicopter crash in 2018, has filed a civil lawsuit against Italian helicopter maker Leonardo SpA LDOF.MI in a London court worth £2.15 billion.
The family stated in a statement on Friday that the action, which seeks loss of earnings and other damages, is the largest fatal accident claim in English history.
Leonardo has been contacted for comments.
Pilot Eric Swaffer, his partner Izabela Roza Lechowicz, and two members of Srivaddhanaprabha’s crew, Nusara Suknamai and Kaveporn Punpare, were all killed in the 2018 crash, which occurred immediately after takeoff outside Leicester City’s King Power Stadium following a Premier League match.
Leicester City’s owner and chairman was King Power duty-free mogul Srivaddhanaprabha, who purchased the central England club in 2010. Leicester City won the English Premier League in 2016 and is still owned by the family, with Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha succeeding his father as chairman.
In a 2023 report, Britain’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) concluded that the pilot was unable to recover from a tail rotor failure on the Leonardo AW169 helicopter.
Following the assessment, Leonardo stated that the AW169 helicopters remained safe to fly, and that the AAIB had decided that the AW169 met all legal standards in its design and construction.
The inquest into the crash will begin on Monday at Leicester Coroner’s Court.
