Regarding the plane crash of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, the Civil Aviation Ministry said that he was cleared for landing just one minute before the mid-size business jet carrying Ajit Pawar crashed at 8:44 am on Wednesday (January 28, 2026) and burst into flames. All five people on board the plane died in this plane crash.
The Civil Aviation Ministry shared the information quoting the statement of the Air Traffic Control (ATC) officer posted at Baramati Airport. The ministry said that Learjet-45 was advised to land in visual meteorological conditions. This means that the visibility on the runway was only so much that the pilot could use his discretion to operate the aircraft while maintaining distance from the ground and other aircraft.
What did the Civil Aviation Ministry say in the statement?
The statement said that the aircraft crew had sought information about wind direction and visibility. They were told that the air was calm and visibility was about 3,000 metres. After this the aircraft reported final approach to Runway 11, but the pilot of the aircraft was not able to see the runway. In the first attempt he started the go-around process. After the go-around, ATC asked the aircraft about its position, to which the pilot again informed that it was on final approach.
The ministry said that they were asked to inform about the visibility of the runway, to which the pilot replied that at the moment the runway is not visible, he will inform when it becomes visible. After a few seconds the pilot said that he could see the runway. Therefore, he was given permission to land the plane on Runway 11, but he did not confirm the landing clearance. After this, ATC saw flames at 8:44 am on the left side of Runway 11, where the debris of the plane had fallen.
