Helicopter firm seeks cockpit data from Leicester City crash

Summarised from Leicestershire Live's report · Updated 5 Nov, 18:46 · Archive

The manufacturer of the helicopter that crashed in Leicester in 2018, killing five people including Leicester City's former owner, has applied for access to flight recordings.

The Leonardo AW169 helicopter crashed in Leicester on 27 October 2018 after taking off from the pitch following a match between Leicester City and West Ham. Five people died: the club's former owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, pilot Eric Swaffer, co-pilot Izabela Lechowicz, and passengers Nusara Suknami and Kaveporn Punpare. A jury inquest concluded the deaths were accidental.

Srivaddhanaprabha's widow Aimon and their four children are seeking £2.15 billion in compensation from Italian manufacturer Leonardo S.p.A. At a High Court hearing, Leonardo applied for disclosure of flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder data held by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch. The manufacturer's lawyers describe it as the largest fatal accident claim in English history. Leonardo argues the data is necessary for a fair trial and contends the helicopter was not defective, claiming instead that the crash resulted from 'unreasonable acts or omissions' by the pilot.

Read the report

• Helicopter firm launches bid for fatal Leicester City crash cockpit recordingsThe former owner of the Foxes Khun Vichai was among five people killed in the tragedyLeicestershire Live · 5 Nov, 17:59

In this story: Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha · Leonardo S.p.A. · Leicester City · Leicester

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