Indian Investigators Probe Fatal Learjet Charter Crash

Indian aviation officials are probing the cause of a fatal accident on Wednesday that killed all five people on board a Learjet 45 that crashed while landing at Baramati Airport, including Ajit Pawar, deputy chief minister of Maharashtra state. The chartered aircraft (VT-SSK), operated by VSR Ventures, was at the end of a short flight from Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (VABB).

Group captain G.V.G. Yugandhar, director general of India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), is leading the operation, in which manufacturer Bombardier is also involved. Both flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been recovered from the wreckage of the twinjet.

Eyewitness reports mentioned that the aircraft had appeared unstable on approach to Baramati, with smoke trailing from it and elevated levels of noise from the engines. Radar data showed the Learjet vanishing seconds before hitting the ground around 100 feet short of Runway 11 and erupting into flames.

An initial review of the accident by India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation indicated that the crew executed a go‑around after losing visual contact with the runway on the first approach. No mayday call was made before the aircraft impacted terrain.

On January 27, the day before the crash, Yugandhar told a meeting of the Business Aviation Operators Association (BAOA) in Hyderabad that most general aviation accidents in India arise from violations of standard operating procedures. With technology improving, he warned, human error, not technical failure, now drives most incidents and accidents.

Baramati is an uncontrolled Category A airfield operating purely under visual flight rules. The airport has no VOR or precision approach indicators. There is also no independent weather service or licensed air traffic controllers, with a radio/ATC position staffed by pilot cadets from local flying schools.

“Pilots are well aware of the rules for Category A airports and the inherent challenges of operating into India’s [roughly 150 uncontrolled] airfields,” (retired) captain R.K. Bali, managing director of BAOA, told AIN. Visibility at such airfields must be at least 5 kilometers, and weather requires verification before departure.

Bali specifically cautioned about the dangers of pilots’ safety decisions for charter flights being “overridden by client pressure.” He said that VIPs, including politicians and other public figures, should be specifically warned about the dangers of flying to uncontrolled airfields in marginal weather.