Leicester City owner feared dead in crash
Fears grew for Leicester City's Thai chairman on Sunday after a helicopter belonging to the billionaire crashed and burst into flames in the football stadium car park moments after taking off from the club's pitch.
There was no confirmation whether Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who frequently flies to and from Leicester's home games by helicopter, was on board the aircraft which appeared to develop mechanical problems.
The BBC quoted a source and a witness as saying Vichai, and a group of other people boarded the helicopter from the centre-circle in the middle of the pitch once the stadium emptied after Saturday's 1-1 draw with West Ham.
Leicester City said it only it was assisting police with a "major incident" and officials at King Power, Vichai's duty-free shopping empire, were not commenting.
Images showed balls of flame engulfing the wreckage in the carpark at King Power Stadium -- the scene of unbridled jubilation after Leicester's against-all-odds Premier League title victory in 2016.
"Literally the engine stopped and I turned around, and it made a bit of a whirring noise. It turned silent, blades started spinning and then there was a big bang," freelance photographer Ryan Brown told BBC Radio 5 Live.
None of the identities of the pilot or passengers was revealed, and there was also no information about whether anyone on the ground was injured.
"I can't get to sleep over it, because it means a lot to me, he did a lot for the club," supporter Anti Patel told AFP.
Expressions of concern poured in from around the football world, in Britain and beyond. Leicester stars Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire both tweeted emojis of hands held up in prayer.
And ordinary fans in central Bangkok said Vichai helped develop Thailand's football as well.
Vichai bought Leicester City in 2010 and moved to chairman the following February, pouring millions into the team and becoming a beloved figure in the club and city -- a feat not always achieved by the Premier League's foreign owners.
It was under Vichai's ownership that Leicester crafted one of the biggest fairy-tales in football history by winning the 2015/16 Premier League, having started the season as 5,000-1 outsiders.
The success also qualified them for the first time for the Champions League, where they defied the odds by winning their group before eventually losing their quarterfinal 2-1 to Atletico Madrid.
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