Leicester City owner’s death in helicopter crash was accidental, inquest finds
The deaths of five people, including Leicester City’s owner, in a helicopter crash were accidental, an inquest jury has ruled.
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, referred to in court as Khun Vichai, died in the crash along with two of his staff, Nursara Suknamai and Kaveporn Punpare, pilot Eric Swaffer, and Mr Swaffer’s girlfriend Izabela Roza Lechowicz, a fellow pilot.
The jury delivered its verdict on Tuesday after being previously instructed to conclude that the crash was accidental.
Philip Shepherd KC, representing the relatives of Khun Vichai, said those who died were the “innocent victims of a tragic accident that never needed to happen”.
His son Khun Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, described his father as “one-of-a-kind, an investor in dreams” and said: “We miss him and feel his loss every day.”
“My father trusted in the design of this helicopter,” he said in a statement. It wasn’t safe. It was a death trap.”
As the helicopter was leaving the King Power Stadium in Leicester on 27 October 2018, a fault caused it to spin “rapidly” out of control before it crashed outside the stadium and burst into flames, the inquest heard.
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four others died when their helicopter crashed in 2018. Pic: PA
Jon Rudkin, Leicester City’s director of football, who had known Mr Srivaddhanaprabha for eight years, described the moment the Leonardo AW169 helicopter started to “nosedive” after taking off at 8.37pm.
“It held its position as it sometimes did,” he said. “As it turned it continued to turn and then go into a spin.
“As soon as it went on that first full circle, I thought this was strange.
“It then started to nosedive away from the stadium still rotating in the air.”
Tributes at a memorial outside Leicester City’s ground after the crash. Pic: AP
Mr Rudkin told the inquest he saw the chairman wave and give him a thumbs up before the helicopter took off.
The inquest was shown an animation of the helicopter’s mechanical failure and told a duplex bearing on the tail rotor became “seized and locked”, which caused the actuator control shaft to spin “very fast”.
Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) principal inspector Mark Jarvis said the pilot had done everything he could to try to avoid the crash.
The inquest also heard how police officers tried to smash the aircraft’s windscreen after it crashed, but would never have been able to break the “very strong structure” designed to withstand a bird strike at a speed of 180mph (290kph).
Nusara Suknamai was among those who died in the crash
Sergeant Michael Hooper said he could hear the helicopter’s trapped pilot, Mr Swaffer, shouting: “Get me out of here, help me.”
The crashed helicopter was resting on its left-hand side, meaning neither side door could be opened. A fuel leak then caused the aircraft to catch fire.
PC Stephen Quartermain became emotional as he remembered realising “the people were going to die”.
Ms Lechowicz died from injuries sustained when the helicopter hit the ground – but the other four victims initially survived the crash, and were killed by smoke inhalation from the fire, a pathologist told the inquest.
Prince William and Kate visited the stadium to pay their respects in the wake of the crash. Pic: AP
‘Caring and devoted’
As the inquest opened at Leicester City Hall, the jury heard pen portraits of the victims, with Mr Srivaddhanaprabha described as a “caring and devoted husband, father, uncle and grandfather”.
In a tribute read by family barrister Philip Shepherd KC, relatives called him “a great inspiration to us all” and said: “We all loved him very much.”
They added: “He was adored by everyone for his kind spirit, generosity, charm, sense of humour and intellect.”
A statue of Mr Srivaddhanaprabha now stands outside the King Power Stadium. Pic: PA
Kate Lechowicz, Ms Lechowicz’s sister, described her in a statement as an “extraordinary individual” who “exuded a passion for life” and who “accomplished her task with grace and efficiency”.
Kate Lechowicz also read a tribute to the helicopter’s pilot, Mr Swaffer, and said: “He was great company. He had profound love for aviation, technology, travel, his motorbike and life in general.”
Tributes were also paid to passenger Kaveporn Punpare, who had a young daughter and was one of several butlers employed by the late Leicester City chairman.
A statement prepared for the inquest by his wife said he had initially worked for Mr Srivaddhanaprabha as an assistant butler who accompanied family members on trips.
Meanwhile, Nusara Suknamai, an employee of Khun Vichai’s, was described as a “pillar” of her family.
Speaking to Sky News, her father, Viroj Suknamai, said: “She was a lively person, she was the breadwinner of the family.
“She was the one who looked after the family and after she passed away we have had difficulties financially.”
Ms Suknamai was a former Miss Thailand contestant.
Her father said: “I remember all the good memories that we had together, I remember when she was in the beauty pageants, I was the one who would drive her there.
“If she was still here today she would’ve had a very bright future ahead of her, she could have done many more things in her life.”
Before the start of the inquest, Mr Srivaddhanaprabha’s family launched a £2.15bn lawsuit against the helicopter’s manufacturer, Italian company Leonardo SpA.
It is the largest fatal accident claim in English history, according to the family’s lawyers. The sum is for loss of earnings and other damages as a result of the billionaire’s death.
Negotiations to reset the UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU are going “to the wire”, a Cabinet Office minister has said.
“There is no final deal as yet. We are in the very final hours,” the UK’s lead negotiator Nick Thomas-Symonds told Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.
On the possibility of a youth mobility scheme with the EU, he insisted “nothing is agreed until everything is”.
“We would be open to a smart, controlled youth mobility scheme,” he said. “But I should set out, we will not return to freedom of movement.”
Politics latest: PM outlines ‘benefits’ for UK from closer EU ties
The government is set to host EU leaders in London on Monday.
Put to the minister that the government could not guarantee there will be a deal by tomorrow afternoon, Mr Thomas-Symonds said: “Nobody can guarantee anything when you have two parties in a negotiation.”
But the minister said he remained “confident” a deal could be reached “that makes our borders more secure, is good for jobs and growth, and brings people’s household bills down”.
“That is what is in our national interest and that’s what we will continue to do over these final hours,” he said.
“We have certainly been taking what I have called a ruthlessly pragmatic approach.”
On agricultural products, food and drink, Mr Thomas-Symonds said supermarkets were crying out for a deal because the status quo “isn’t working”, with “lorries stuck for 16 hours and food rotting” and producers and farmers unable to export goods because of the amount of “red tape”.
Asked how much people could expect to save on shopping as a result of the deal the government was hoping to negotiate, the minister was unable to give a figure.
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Starmer’s stance on immigration criticised
On the issue of fishing, asked if a deal would mean allowing French boats into British waters, the minister said the Brexit deal which reduced EU fishing in UK waters by a quarter over five years comes to an end next year.
He said the objectives now included “an overall deal in the interest of our fishers, easier access to markets to sell our fish and looking after our oceans”.
Turning to borders, the minister was asked if people would be able to move through queues at airports faster.
Again, he could not give a definitive answer, but said it was “certainly something we have been pushing with the EU… we want British people who are going on holiday to be able to go and enjoy their holiday, and not be stuck in queues”.
PM opens door to EU youth mobility scheme
A deal granting the UK access to a major EU defence fund could be on the table, according to reports – and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has appeared to signal a youth mobility deal could be possible, telling The Times that while freedom of movement is a “red line”, youth mobility does not come under this.
The European Commission has proposed opening negotiations with the UK on an agreement to facilitate youth mobility between the EU and the UK. The scheme would allow both UK and EU citizens aged between 18 and 30 years old to stay for up to four years in a country of their choosing.
Earlier this month, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told Phillips a youth mobility scheme was not the approach the government wanted to take to bring net migration down.
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Lack of UK training ‘big driver of net migration’
When this was put to him, Mr Thomas-Symonds insisted any deal on a youth mobility scheme with Europe will have to be “smart” and “controlled” and will be “consistent” with the government’s immigration policy.
Asked what the government had got in return for a youth mobility scheme – now there had been a change in approach – the minister said: “It is about an overall balanced package that works for Britain. The government is 100% behind the objective of getting net migration down.”
Phillips said more than a million young people came to the country between 2004 and 2015. “If there isn’t a cap – that’s what we are talking about,” he said.
The minister insisted such a scheme would be “controlled” – but refused to say whether there would be a cap.
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‘It’s going to be a bad deal’
Shadow cabinet office minister Alex Burghart told Phillips an uncapped youth mobility scheme with the EU would lead to “much higher immigration”, adding: “It sounds very much as though it’s going to be a bad deal.”
Asked if the Conservatives would scrap any EU deal, he said: “It depends what the deal is, Trevor. And we still, even at this late stage, we don’t know.
“The government can’t tell us whether everyone will be able to come. They can’t tell us how old the young person is. They can’t tell us what benefits they would get.
“So I think when people hear about a youth mobility scheme, they think about an 18-year-old coming over working at a bar. But actually we may well be looking at a scheme which allows 30-year-olds to come over and have access to the NHS on day one, to claim benefits on day one, to bring their extended families.”
He added: “So there are obviously very considerable disadvantages to the UK if this deal is done in the wrong way.”
Jose Manuel Barroso, former EU Commission president, told Phillips it “makes sense” for a stronger relationship to exist between the European Union and the UK, adding: “We are stronger together.”
He said he understood fishing and youth mobility are the key sticking points for a UK-EU deal.
“Frankly, what is at stake… is much more important than those specific issues,” he said.
Gary Lineker is to leave the BBC after this season’s final Match Of The Day and will no longer present its coverage of the World Cup, Sky News understands.
It comes after he “apologised unreservedly” for a social media repost featuring a rat – used in propaganda by Nazi Germany to dehumanise Jewish people – and said he would “never knowingly share anything antisemitic”.
Lineker’s last appearance on the BBC will be on 25 May, the final day of the season, with confirmation expected on Monday.
The former England star announced in November he would step down from Match Of The Day this year, but was set to return to front the World Cup in 2026, as well as FA Cup coverage.
Lineker, 64, said he was unaware the post he shared was antisemitic and it went against “everything I believe in”.
In response to the presenter resharing the post, the Campaign Against Antisemitism said his “continued association with the BBC is untenable”.
And when asked about Lineker last week, BBC director general Tim Davie said: “When someone makes a mistake, it costs the BBC reputationally.”
The presenter was temporarily suspended from the BBC in March 2023 after an impartiality row over comments he made criticising the then Conservative government’s asylum policy.
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Lineker has hosted Match Of The Day since 1999 and has been the BBC’s highest-paid on-air talent for seven consecutive years. He also has a successful podcast production company.
Kelly Cates, Mark Chapman and Gabby Logan will share the role of presenting Match of the Day. Pic BBC/PA
Mark Chapman, Kelly Cates and Gabby Logan will take over the highlights show from next season.
When the trio take over as hosts, it will be the first time the role has been shared by three people.
Sky News has contacted the BBC for comment.
A teenager has been arrested after a 16-year-old boy died following reports of a “disturbance” at a beach in Ayrshire.
Kayden Moy was found seriously injured by officers at Irvine Beach at around 6.45pm on Saturday.
The teenager, from East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, was taken to hospital but died in the early hours.
Police Scotland said on Sunday evening that a 17-year-old boy had been arrested and enquires were continuing.
Officers believe the incident may have been filmed and have urged witnesses and anyone with information to come forward.
Kayden. Pic: Facebook
The incident happened at Irvine Beach in Ayrshire, Scotland. File pic: iStock
Detective Chief Inspector Campbell Jackson said: “An extensive investigation is under way to establish the full circumstances surrounding this death.
“Our officers are supporting the boy’s family at this very difficult and heartbreaking time.
“From our investigation so far, we know there were a number of people on the beach around the time of the disturbance.
“We believe several of them were filming at the time and may have footage of what happened.
“I would urge people to review the footage they have and contact police if they think the footage captured could be of significance to our investigation.”
This can be submitted anonymously, the force said.
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Superintendent Jim McMillan added: “We understand this death will be of great concern for the local community, but please be assured that we are doing everything we can to identify those involved.
“There will be additional patrols in the area as we carry out our enquiries and anyone with any concerns can approach these officers.”
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