Ajith Pawar's death: Aviation minister cites poor visibility during crash; DGCA launches probe

Pune: Union Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu said on Wednesday that preliminary inputs indicate poor visibility at Baramati airport at the time the aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar crash-landed.

Pawar and four others died when the chartered aircraft crashed on Wednesday morning. Naidu, along with Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol, travelled from Delhi to Pune to attend Pawar’s last rites.

"Teams from the DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) and AAIB (Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau) have arrived to carry out a probe into the accident. Preliminary information suggests that visibility was poor at the time the aircraft was attempting to land," Naidu said.

He explained that when Air Traffic Control (ATC) at Baramati asked the pilot if the runway was visible, the pilot replied in the negative, prompting a go-around. During the second attempt, ATC again queried runway visibility and received an affirmative response, he said. After receiving landing clearance, the aircraft crashed. Naidu added, "We are seeking more details and will conduct the investigation in a transparent manner."

Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee demanded a probe into the air crash that led to Pawar’s death.

Flight caught fire and exploded: Eyewitnesses
Eyewitnesses said the aircraft carrying Ajit Pawar looked unsteady in the air and exploded immediately after hitting the ground near Baramati in Pune district on Wednesday morning, reported PTI.

Another witness said the plane caught fire after the crash and was followed by four to five successive explosions. A local woman said she noticed the aircraft circling the airport earlier in the morning.

"It took a round in the air, appeared a bit unstable, and as it was approaching the runway to land, it hit the ground hard and exploded. There was a loud sound that could be heard at our home," she told a news channel.

She added that debris was flung into the air and landed near her house. "The plane tilted before coming down. We saw the explosion, and it was frightening," she said.

Another eyewitness said the aircraft seemed to be losing control during descent. "The way the plane was coming down, we felt it was going to crash. It was around 100 feet above the runway. As we rushed towards it, we saw flames, followed by four to five consecutive blasts, which prevented us from going anywhere near the aircraft," he told reporters.

"It was a major fire. We later learned that Pawar was on the aircraft. It was shocking for us," he added.

Pramod Madurikar, another eyewitness, said the bodies were identified soon after the crash and moved to an ambulance, while fire brigade teams arrived almost at the same time to support rescue and emergency efforts.

Flight Radar data showed the aircraft departed Mumbai at 8.10 am and vanished from radar around 8.45 am.

Pawar was en route from Mumbai to Baramati to attend public meetings as part of the campaign for the February 5 zilla parishad elections in the state.