Ajit Pawar’s Plane Burst Into Flames At Baramati Airport, All Onboard Killed: Here’s What We Know So Far

A chartered aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar crashed early Wednesday morning while attempting to land at Baramati Airport in Pune district. The plane, flying from Mumbai, ran into trouble during the final phase of its journey and crash-landed on the runway at around 8.45 AM. 

Ajit Pawar and four others on board were killed on the spot, officials and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed. Emergency teams rushed to the site as visuals showed the aircraft wreckage engulfed in flames, with charred and scattered debris across the runway.

What We Know So Far

1. Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and four others confirmed dead in the crash, as per DGCA and official sources. 
2. The incident occurred during the landing phase at Baramati Airport, Pawar’s constituency.
3. The aircraft faced trouble in the final approach, according to preliminary information. It had a threshold crash-landing on the runway.
4. The aircraft kept drifting right during landing. The plane crash-landed on the runway and caught fire immediately after impact.
5. As per initial findings, the fatal plane crash in Baramati was primarily triggered by low visibility, as dense fog blanketed the area. The aircraft was unable to maintain its designated course, drifting dangerously off-track. As desperate attempts to regain control failed, the aircraft crashed at the very edge of the airport.
6. All onboard were evacuated but all were seriously wounded and later succumbed to their injuries
7. No survivors on board, the DGCA has confirmed. Passengers on board were Ajit Pawar, two personnel (one PSO and one attendant), and two crew members (pilot-in-command and first officer). Captain Sumit Kapur and Captain Sambhavi Pathak were onboard too. All five lost their lives.
8. Visuals from the crash site show charred and scattered aircraft debris, with thick smoke rising.
9. As per sources, Ajit Pawar was enroute Baramati from Mumbai on a 7 AM flight to attend a day-long Zilla Parishad event. He was scheduled to return to Mumbai this evening 
10. The Ministry of Civil Aviation has officially demanded a comprehensive report from Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to determine the sequence of events leading to the fatal crash.
11. While the exact cause of the crash-landing remains under investigation, preliminary findings indicate that the aircraft overran the runway during its landing attempt. 

Aircraft Details (DGCA Occurrence Report)

Accident Date: 28.01.2026

Operator: VSR

Aircraft type: Learjet 45

Registration: VT-SSK

Route: Mumbai to Baramati

Take-off time: 8 AM

Crash time: 8.45 AM

Location: Baramati Airport, Pune district

More Details

Ajit Pawar was en route to Baramati to attend a Zilla Parishad event. As per sources, Ajit Pawar took a 7 AM flight from Mumbai and the duration of the journey was slated to be 40 minutes. He was scheduled to return to Mumbai after Zilla Parishad meeting.

He was in Mumbai on Tuesday, where he attended a meeting of the Maharashtra Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule and concerned officials were present at the meeting.

About Ajit Pawar

Ajit Pawar was the longest serving Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra non-consecutively. He served in the position for six terms within various governments. He had worked as deputy chief minister in the cabinets of Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde.

He is married to Sunetra Pawar, with whom he has two sons, Jay and Parth Pawar.

In 1982, Ajit Pawar began his political career after being elected to the board of a cooperative sugar factory. In 1991, he was elected as the chairman of the Pune District Central Cooperative Bank.He was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1991 from the Baramati Parliamentary constituency and later vacated the seat for his uncle Sharad Pawar. He was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly seven times from the Baramati Assembly constituency. He first won in a 1991 by-election and subsequently in 1995, 1999, 2004, 2009, and 2014.

In November 2019, he engineered a split in the NCP and joined a government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party and became the Deputy Chief Minister. In February 2024, the Election Commission awarded the party name and symbol to the faction headed by Ajit Pawar. (With ANI inputs)