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The crash took place shortly before 9 am as the Maharashtra Dy CM was travelling from Mumbai to Baramati to address four public rallies ahead of the Zilla Parishad elections. Here's what we know so far about what led to the tragedy.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar passed away on Wednesday in a plane crash in Baramati.
The crash took place shortly before 9 am as the Maharashtra Dy CM was travelling from Mumbai to Baramati to address four public rallies ahead of the Zillia Parishad elections.
Five people, incuding the senior NCP leader, was on board the flight, with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirming that there were no survivors in the crash.
Authorities have already launched an investigation into the tragic crash and as the probe continues, we take a look at the details that have emerged thus far.
What led to the plane crash?
While details are scarce about the crash at the moment, preliminary reports suggest technical issues and poor visibility may have contributed.
PTI, citing flight tracking data, reported that the plane, a Bombardier Aerospace Learjet 45, took off from Mumbai and flew for around 35 minutes before crash-landing near Baramati.
Pawar's plane took off from the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) at 8.10 am on Wednesday and disappeared off tracking screens at 8.45 am.
The flight path showed the aircraft making a loop to line-up with the runaway at the Baramati airport, Indian Express reported.
News18, meanwhile, reported that there were likely technical issues with the plane, which prompted the pilot to attempt an emergency landing.
However, while attempting the emergency landing, the aircraft reportedly skidded off the runway and crashed.
“The aircraft VT SSK was attempting a landing, and the aircraft went off the side of the runway and crashed,” Baramati airport manager Shivaji Taware told Hindustan Times.
PTI, citing sources, also reported that the pilot mentioned poor visibility prior to attempting the emergency landing, and it is understood that dense fog in the Pune district and the Baramati region may have played a part in the tragic accident.
What did eyewitnesses say?
An eyewitness told ANI that Pawar's plane looked like it would crash as it was descending. Visuals, menawhile, showed the mangled wreckage of the plane, and flames.
"When the aircraft descended, it seemed it would crash, and it did crash. It then exploded. There was a massive explosion," the eyewitness was quoted as saying.
A series of explosions also reportedly followed, with the eyewitness telling ANI, "After that, we rushed here and saw that the aircraft was on fire. There were four to five explosions in the aircraft again."
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