Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday died in a plane crash in Baramati. CCTV footage of the incident surfaced online showed the plane engulfed into flames soon after the crash. It should be noted that a total of five people, including Ajit Pawar, died in the plane crash.
Ajit Pawar was traveling to Baramati to address meetings
According to Flight Radar, the flight took off from Mumbai at 8.10 am and it disappeared from radar around 8.45 am. Ajit Pawar was traveling to Baramati from Mumbai to address public meetings as part of the campaign for the February 5 zilla parishad elections in the state. There were five people on board when the aircraft crashed at 8.50 am, a police official said.
In the meantime, a special team of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) will investigate the aircraft crash in Baramati, which took away the lives of five individuals, including Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and crew members.
Probe team will retrieve flight recorder
During the course of the investigation, the probe team will retrieve the flight recorder, Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) and Digital Engine Electronic System (DEES).
Airframe and engine logbooks, work orders, on-board documents, and major inspection records related to aircraft will be gathered from the operator for scrutiny. The probe team has also sought the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) documents related to the crew and the aircraft.
Recordings of radar data, CCTV footage, ATC tape recordings, and hotline communications will be obtained for further analysis. The investigation team will record the statements of witnesses and concerned personnel.
Ajit Pawar died in a charter plane crash while travelling from Mumbai to Bramati this morning. He was in Mumbai on January 27, where he attended a meeting of the Maharashtra Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure, chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Fadanvis announces state holiday, 3 days of mourning
Devendra Fadanvis has announced a state holiday and three days of mourning following the demise of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, in a plane crash this morning. Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, CM Fadanvis said that the decision on Pawar's last rites will be made after consulting his family.
Ajit Pawar,66, was the nephew of veteran politician and NCP founder Sharad Pawar, and the cousin of Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule. 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.
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