An inquest into the deaths of five people killed when a Leonardo AW169 helicopter crashed at an English soccer stadium on Oct. 27, 2018, opened in Leicester today. In a hearing expected to run through January 31, a senior coroner and a jury will assess the causes of the deaths of Leicester City Football Club chairman Khun Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha; fellow passengers Nusara Suknamai, Kaveporn Punpare, and Izabela Lechowicz; and pilot Eric Swaffer.

The inquest began three days after Khun Vichai’s family filed a lawsuit in England’s High Court against Leonardo, the helicopter's manufacturer, claiming £2.15 billion ($2.6 billion) in damages for his death. In a statement issued on January 10, Leonardo expressed its deepest sympathy for those who lost their lives, saying it will defend the claim and is considering the matter with legal advisers and insurers.

During the inquest, the coroner and jury will hear evidence from the UK Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB), emergency services providers, eyewitnesses, and families of those killed in the crash, which occurred as the AW169 departed the King Power stadium after a game. The AAIB report published in September 2023 identified the main cause of the accident as failures in the tail rotor pitch control mechanism. The agency also made eight recommendations to EASA to address what it said were weaknesses in the certification process for large rotorcraft.

Following the accident, EASA issued airworthiness directives requiring inspections of tail rotors on both the AW169 and larger AW189 helicopters to ensure correct installation of the servo actuators. Leonardo has also issued multiple service bulletins addressing the issues identified in the AAIB accident report.