On the afternoon of June 19, a twin-engine propeller plane, a Cessna 421, crashed and caught fire in a field near La Baule, Loire-Atlantique, France, killing two people. According to Ouest-France and France 3 Régions, one of the victims is Claude Guillemot, co-founder of Ubisoft and owner of the aircraft. The plane had taken off from Rennes. Mayor Franck Louvrier confirmed the aircraft was a Cessna 421 with eight seats. The plane caught fire upon impact and the flames spread to nearby vegetation, but were extinguished by firefighters. The identity of the second victim has not yet been released.
Claude Guillemot co-founded Ubisoft in 1986 in Brittany with his brothers Christian, Gérard, Michel, and Yves. Yves Guillemot currently serves as Ubisoft’s Chairman and CEO. Ubisoft is the publisher of the Assassin’s Creed, Ghost Recon, and Far Cry series, has faced financial pressure in recent years, and laid off over 700 employees in 2025. The cause of the accident is under investigation.