Baramati Plane Crash: Government Report Details Final Moments Leading to Tragic Death of Ajit Pawar and Others

Baramati, Jan 2026 : The Central government on Wednesday released a detailed and sobering official report outlining the precise sequence of events that culminated in the fatal aviation accident near Baramati Airport, which claimed the lives of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others. The comprehensive account, issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, reconstructs the final minutes of the Learjet 45 aircraft and sheds light on the communication breakdowns, environmental conditions, and operational factors that preceded the disaster.

The ill-fated aircraft, a Learjet 45 bearing registration number VT-SSK, was operated by VSR Ventures. On board the jet were five individuals: Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, a personal security officer (PSO), an attendant, and two crew members — the Pilot-in-Command (PIC) and the Second-in-Command (SIC). According to the official passenger manifest, the deceased have been identified as Vidip Jadhav (male), Pinky Mali (female), PIC Sumit Kapur, and SIC Shambhavi Pathak, in addition to Ajit Pawar.

As per the Ministry’s report, the aircraft initiated contact with Baramati station at approximately 8:18 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Baramati Airport functions as an uncontrolled airfield, meaning it does not have a full-fledged Air Traffic Control tower. Instead, coordination and traffic advisories are managed through active radio communication between pilots and instructors from multiple flight training schools operating at the airfield.

At around 30 nautical miles from Baramati, the aircraft was released by Pune Approach Control for local coordination. The crew was instructed to descend under Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC), with the exact timing left to the pilots’ professional judgement. During the approach, the crew sought updates on prevailing weather conditions, including wind speed and visibility. They were informed that winds were calm and visibility was approximately 3,000 metres — conditions considered marginal but workable for a visual landing.

As the aircraft entered the final phase of its approach to Runway 11, the crew reported that they were unable to visually acquire the runway. Due to the lack of visual contact with the landing strip, the pilots made the decision to abort the first landing attempt and initiated a go-around manoeuvre, a standard safety procedure in such circumstances.

Following the go-around, ground coordination personnel requested the aircraft’s position update. The pilots once again reported that they were on final approach for Runway 11. When asked whether the runway was visible, the crew initially stated that it was not yet in sight and assured that they would confirm once visual contact was established.

According to the Ministry’s chronological account, a few seconds later the pilots reported that the runway was in sight. Based on this confirmation, the aircraft was formally cleared to land on Runway 11 at exactly 8:43 a.m. However, in a critical development, Air Traffic Control personnel did not receive the mandatory verbal acknowledgement or readback of the landing clearance from the cockpit crew.

Moments later, at approximately 8:44 a.m., observers on the ground witnessed a sudden burst of flames near the threshold of Runway 11. The sight of fire immediately triggered emergency protocols, and rescue and firefighting teams were rushed to the site of the crash. The Learjet was later found wrecked on the left side of the runway, abeam the threshold, with debris scattered across the impact zone.

The Ministry’s report notes that the absence of a readback from the cockpit after landing clearance remains a critical point of concern and will be closely examined as part of the investigation. In aviation procedures, readbacks are essential to confirm that pilots have correctly understood and accepted instructions, particularly during landing.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has formally taken charge of the probe into the crash. The Director General of the AAIB is en route to the crash site to personally oversee evidence collection, examination of flight data, cockpit voice recordings (if retrievable), and analysis of wreckage. The government has assured that further findings will be made public as the technical investigation progresses.

The tragedy has also drawn attention to the operator, VSR Ventures, which reportedly operates a fleet of 17 aircraft. The Ministry highlighted that this is not the first incident involving the company. On September 14, 2023, another Learjet 45 owned by VSR Ventures, registered as VT-DBL, was involved in a separate accident during a landing attempt at Mumbai Airport. That earlier incident remains under investigation by federal aviation authorities.

As Maharashtra and the nation mourn the loss of a senior political leader and others on board, the government has emphasized that accountability, safety oversight, and preventive measures will be central to the ongoing inquiry. The findings of the AAIB are expected to play a crucial role in determining the exact causes of the crash and in shaping future aviation safety protocols to prevent similar tragedies.

(The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)