Mumbai: The Bombardier Learjet 45XR aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others was reportedly attempting a second landing at the Baramati Airport when it crashed on Wednesday, January 28, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said.
The ministry released a statement detailing the sequence of the last moments before the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader’s death.
The plane left Mumbai at 8:10 am
The plane, owned by VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd, a Delhi-based non-scheduled air transport operator, left Mumbai at 8:10 am. At 8:18 am, the plane confirmed its contact with Baramati Airport’s Air Traffic Control (ATC).
With a distance of 256 km, the flying time between Mumbai and Baramati is less than an hour.
The aircraft contacted the ATC when it was 30 nautical miles away from Baramati and heading towards it. Till that point, Pune Approach Control had cleared the aircraft from its radar-controlled service. The pilots were then advised to continue landing on their own, since weather conditions were good for flying.
Visibility poor, runway not in sight
During the final approach on Runway 11, the pilots reported that the runway was not in sight and initiated a go-around. Since their attempted landing was disrupted, they instead climbed back up instead of touching down.
After the go-around, when asked about the aircraft’s position, the pilots again reported that they were on the final approach to Runway 11.
Again, the aircraft was asked to report visibility. They replied, “Runway is currently not in sight, will call when runway is in sight.”
Seconds later, they reported the landing was visible.
Landing cleared but no readback given
At around 8:43 am, the ATC cleared the aircraft to land, but the pilots did not repeat or acknowledge that clearance over the radio, going silent. Readbacks are a standard safety procedure to verbally confirm receiving a landing clearance or other communications.
The signals reportedly stopped around 20 km from the Baramati airport, when the plane could have been just one kilometer above ground and flying at 237 km per hour.
ATC spots flames one minute after
At 8:44, the ATC saw flames around Runway 11 with massive plumes of smoke caught on nearby closed circuit television (CCTV) camera footage showing the scale of the crash.
Emergency services were promptly deployed at the crash site and wreckage was found on the runway’s left side.
Visuals from the site show the wreckage of the plane engulfed in flames. There were people at the wreckage site trying to extend help in every possible way. The locals had rushed to the spot on seeing the aircraft crash-land.
Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has taken over the investigation, with officials reaching the accident site for investigation, the ministry said. Further details will be shared when available, they added.
The aircraft carrier was a Non-Scheduled Operator (NSOP) with Permit No 07/2014. Initial AOP (Airport Operations Plan) was issued on April 21 2014. The AOP was last renewed on April 3 2023, and is valid till April 20 2028, the civil aviation ministry said.
Its fleet included seven Learjet 45 aircraft (including the one involved in the crash), five Embraer 135BJ aircraft, four King Air B200 aircraft and one Pilatus PC-12 aircraft.
The last regulatory audit of the aircraft carrying Pawar was carried out by DGCA in February 2025, and “no level-I findings were issued”, the ministry said.
The aircraft was manufactured in 2010. The C of A (certificate of airworthiness) was issued on December 16, 2021. The Cof R (Certificate of Registration) was issued on December 27, 2022. The ARC (airworthiness review certificate) was issued on September 10, 2025, and was valid until September 14, 2026.
Ajit Pawar’s ‘flight scare’ incident resurfaces
Ajit Pawar had shared an anecdote about the tense moments he experienced while flying in a helicopter to Gadchiroli with a couple of prominent politicians from the state amid bad weather in July 2024.
He had shared the experience at a public function in Gadchiroli, where he arrived in the helicopter from Nagpur with the then deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Industries Minister Uday Samant.
Although the anecdote was about the mid-air scare he experienced, Pawar had narrated it in his trademark humorous style. A video of Pawar’s speech has now resurfaced on social media following his death.
He said although he was very nervous during the helicopter journey as nothing was visible outside due to a thick cloud cover, Fadnavis was unperturbed and told him that he had experienced mid-air scares six times earlier, and asked him to calm down, saying nothing bad would happen.
The incident had taken place on July 17, 2024 when the three leaders were heading to Gadchiroli from Nagpur for the foundation stone laying ceremony of Surjagad Ispat Pvt Ltd, a steel company.
Addressing the gathering at the event after their arrival, Pawar said, “When we started from Nagpur in the helicopter, it was fine at first. But later, when the helicopter entered the clouds, I looked this way and that way – there were clouds everywhere. And our Devendra Fadnavis was just sitting there, casually chatting.”
“I told him (Fadnavis) – ‘Look outside, we can’t see anything, no trees, no ground, nothing. We are flying blindly through the clouds. Where are we even going?’ But he calmly replied – ‘Don’t worry at all. I have experienced six such incidents so far. Whenever I am in a helicopter or a plane and an accident occurs, nothing happens to me. So, nothing will happen to you either.”
“I thought to myself – ‘My goodness, what is he saying? I already had a sinking feeling in my stomach! Today is Ashadhi Ekadashi (a holy day), so I was constantly chanting ‘Panduranga, Panduranga’ (God’s name) in my mind. And here was this ‘Maharaj’ (Fadnavis) giving me advice,” he said.
Pawar also said that as Fadnavis told him not to worry, he remained completely relaxed and nothing bad really happened.
“It is the good deeds of his (Fadnavis) elders that we reached here (safely)…Those good deeds helped us,” he said.
“But friends, honestly, all of us were quite shaken. Uday Samant was sitting to my right, and he said, ‘Dada, Dada, look! The ground is finally visible’. I said – ‘Thank God, we can see the ground now!’ Jokes apart, everyone must take care,” he said.
(With inputs from PTI.)
