LEICESTER CITY’S THAI OWNER AND DAUGHTER IN HELICOPTER CRASH

Aircraft cleared football club’s stadium before crashing and bursting into flames

LEICESTER City soccer club owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, a Thai tycoon, was among five people in a helicopter that crashed in a ball of flames after a Premier League match on Saturday, a source close to the club said yesterday.

Also on board were one of Vichai’s two daughters, two pilots and a fifth person whose identity was not known. There were no details on whether anyone on board survived.

Vichai, a father of four and the founder of duty-free giant King Power International, is a huge favourite with the fans after he bought the unfancied side from central England in 2010, and they went on to stun the football world by winning the Premier League title in 2016.

The helicopter crashed just yards from the pitch in the club’s car park. Team manager Claude Puel was not on the helicopter, the source said.

According to witnesses, the aircraft just cleared the top of the stadium before it started to spin. It then plummeted to the ground and burst into flames.

John Butcher told the BBC his nephew saw the helicopter spiral out of control apparently due to a faulty rear propeller.

“Within a second it dropped like a stone to the floor. Luckily it did spiral for a little while and everybody sort of ran, sort of scattered. As far as we are aware, nobody around the car park was caught up in this problem.”

According to Forbes magazine, Vichai is the fifth richest in Thailand with a net worth of US$4.9 billion (RM20.3 billion).

Vichai founded Thai duty-free giant King Power in 1989. The business got a big boost in 2006 when it was granted an airport monopoly under the government of then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Leading Leicester players, including Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire, sent messages of support on Twitter while rival clubs, including Manchester City, also voiced their concern.

Freelance photographer Ryan Brown was covering the game and saw the helicopter clear the stadium before it crashed.

“Literally the engine stopped and it made a bit of a whirring noise. It turned silent, blades started spinning and then, there was a big bang,” Brown said.

Leicester had played a league match at home against West Ham United earlier, drawing 1-1.

AGENCY PIX The wreckage of the helicopter belonging to Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha that crashed outside the King Power Stadium on Saturday. (Inset) Vichai celebrating with players after winning the English Premier League title in 2016.