The two helicopter pilots who died with billionaire Vichai were lovers.

Eric and Izabela worked together on the same flight.

The crash occurred on the evening of October 27 outside the King Power Stadium, just over an hour after Leicester drew 1-1 with West Ham in the 10th round of the Premier League. Mr. Vichai was one of five people on the plane and all five died. The other four were two of Vichai's employees, Nursara Suknamai, Kaveporn Punpare, and two pilots, Eric Swaffer and Izabela Roza Lechowicz.

Friend Lucie Morris-Marr of the two pilots said Eric was "one of the happiest, funniest people I've ever met". "He was very generous, very dedicated and very passionate about his work and took it very seriously. He was very good, he could fly a variety of helicopters, from private jets to commercial aircraft," Lucie said. Eric is known to have flown members of the British royal family, the Dalai Lama and worked forBig 4 Channel BreakfastandVirgin Radiothroughout 20 years of career.

Izabela moved from Poland to England in 1997.

Speaking about Eric's girlfriend - Izabela, 46, who also died in the plane crash, Lucie said that the couple, who lived in Camberley (Surrey, England), loved to travel around the world together.

She added: "He said he was very happy flying around the world for private clients and was with his girlfriend - his colleague Izabela. Very few people get to work and travel with their partners, so they must have been very unusual and happy. "It's tragic that they have both died. I'm not surprised to read initial reports that Eric may have steered the helicopter away from the crowds and cars. He did everything in his power to save lives." According to The Sun, Eric tried to steer the helicopter away from the crowds near the stadium, minimising the loss of life.

In an interview, Izabela spoke about how she moved from Poland to the UK in 1997 and started working as a pilot. "I never know what I'll be doing tomorrow because the phone could ring at any moment and I'll be flying to Switzerland, Russia, the Middle East or the Seychelles. For this reason, I rarely make any plans for the weekend because things can change at the last minute," Izabela shared about her work.

Eric flies billionaire Vichai's plane at King Power Stadium.

“I love my job, plus I get to fulfill my biggest dream, which is to travel,” Izabela told Polish news site Emito in July this year.

Neighbours described Eric and Izabela as a “lovely couple”. One said: “They were a jet-setting couple, you never knew if they were home or not because they would be flying all over the world.”