The son of Leicester City FC’s former chair has hit out at the manufacturer of a “death trap” helicopter that crashed and killed his father.
Five people died when the Leonardo AW169 helicopter crashed outside the King Power Stadium and became engulfed in flames, in what an inquest jury ruled on Tuesday was an accident.
The jury returned its conclusion in the inquests into the deaths of Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the helicopter’s pilot Eric Swaffer, his partner and co-pilot Izabela Lechowicz, and passengers Nusara Suknamai and Kaveporn Punpare at Leicester City Hall.
In a statement read on behalf of the relatives of the late chair, his son Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha said: “My father trusted the design of this helicopter. It was Leonardo’s responsibility to make sure the helicopter was safe. It wasn’t safe, it was a death trap.”
Jurors heard that as the helicopter was leaving the stadium on 27 October 2018, a fault caused it to spin “rapidly” out of control before it crashed from a height of 430ft and burst into flames.
Senior coroner Catherine Mason instructed the jury before they began their deliberations that they would only be able to conclude that it had been an accident.
The jury’s conclusion, which was read to the hearing by the foreperson, said: “The helicopter had all airworthiness and maintenance certificates. It was found that the pilot, Eric Swaffer, took all available and appropriate options to try to regain control of the helicopter.”
The inquest was told by Mark Jarvis, a principal inspector for the AAIB, that the helicopter had spun because of a mechanical fault involving a bearing in the tail rotor that had “seized” after its lubrication broke down, causing a control shaft to rotate and become unscrewed.
The helicopter crashed onto its left-hand side on a 0.5m concrete step, creating a “substantial” fuel leak, which ignited the rear of the helicopter within a minute of the impact before flames “rapidly” consumed the aircraft, the jury heard.
They were told that four of the five people killed in the crash died because of smoke inhalation after the fire started, while Lechowicz “likely died at the point of impact” from traumatic injuries to her head and chest.
Recalling the moment the aircraft caught fire, PC Stephen Quartermain became emotional as he remembered realising “the people were going to die”.
Sergeant Mike Hooper of Leicestershire Police described seeing a “wall of flames” while he tried to smash the aircraft’s windscreen with his baton, but the inquest heard it was a “very strong structure” designed to withstand a 180mph bird strike.
Pictures of the five killed in the crash were put on a screen in the court while the conclusion was read.
Senior coroner Catherine Mason paid tribute to the people who died in the helicopter crash and said: “Five innocent lives were cruelly lost on 27 October 2018, lives that were cut too short.
“This huge loss will be borne by the families for the rest of their lives, a loss that is also felt by the community of Leicester.
“It has been a long journey. Just over six years for you, the families, to get the answers you wanted as to how your loved ones came by their deaths.
“I hope you feel through these inquests that you now have a voice.”
Ms Mason also praised the emergency services workers who responded to the crash.
She said: “From what I have heard in evidence and indeed saw with my own eyes in part … is that large numbers of extremely brave men and women selflessly strived to deal with the aftermath of this crash.”
Before the inquest began in January, Srivaddhanaprabha’s family launched a £2.15bn lawsuit against the Italian manufacturer Leonardo SpA. The sum is for loss of earnings and other damages incurred as a result of the billionaire’s death.
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