Emiliano Sala: Family launch legal action against Cardiff over air crash death

It is now more than two years since the Argentine death following a plane crash in the sea north of Guernsey

Emiliano Sala’s family are launching legal action against Cardiff City (Getty)

The family of Emiliano Sala has launched legal proceedings against the Argentine striker’s former club Cardiff City more than two years on from his death in a plane crash.

The former Nantes star was travelling to Cardiff after completing a £15 million move from the Ligue 1 side when his plane crashed into the sea north of Guernsey on 21 January 2019.

And now, ahead of a pre-inquest hearing into Sala’s death in Bournemouth, the family’s legal team has announced its intent to pursue legal action in order to "protect [the family's] legal rights" pending an inquest's outcome.

There are 13 defendants listed in their case, with the civil proceedings including both football clubs, agent Mark McKay and his father Willie McKay, in addition to the company that owned the plane, its manufacturers and those responsible for its maintenance.

READ MORE: ‘It is a tragedy we don’t know the truth’: Emiliano Sala’s family demand answers two years on from player’s death

Firstly, the inquest must be completed, in addition to the trial of David Henderson on 18 October.

Mr Henderson has been accused of arranging the flight from Nantes and will face charges of endangering the safety of an aircraft and attempting to discharge a passenger without valid permission or authorisation.

Lawyer Daniel Machover confirmed that Sala's family wanted the coroner to fix the inquest date following Mr Henderson’s trial.

He said: “In the meantime, in order to protect their legal rights and remedies arising from Emiliano’s untimely death, the family have commenced civil proceedings in the High Court, but will seek agreement to stay those proceedings pending the outcome of the inquest.

“That makes it all the more important for the inquest date to be fixed, so everyone can plan accordingly.

“Most importantly, the family know that the inquest will provide the answers to the very many questions they have about what went wrong in January 2019 and why Emiliano’s life was cut short.”