AAIB team reaches Baramati crash site; launches forensic probe

A team from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has reached the Baramati crash site to launch a forensic probe into the VSR Venture's Learjet 45 aircraft accident that killed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others on Wednesday, a senior official has said.

"The investigation team has reached the (crash) site. They are on the work," the AAIB official told PTI.

The official, however, declined to share further details.

Earlier in the day, AAIB, which has the mandate to investigate all accidents and serious incidents/incidents involving aircraft with a gross weight of 2,250 kg or turbojet aircraft, was handed the probe into the crash.

Five people, including Pawar, his personal security officer and attendant, as well as two cockpit crew, pilot-in-command Sumit Kapur and first officer Shambhavi Pathak, were killed when the 16-year-old mid-size-business jet made the second attempt to land after doing a go around on Wednesday morning.

The aircraft, bearing registration VT-SSK, was being operated by the Delhi-based non-scheduled operator VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd.

The crew was advised to descend in visual meteorological conditions at the pilot's discretion, the Civil Aviation Ministry said in its statement.

At that time, the winds were calm, and visibility was around 3,000 metres, it said.

Baramati airfield does not have an instrumental landing system - a precision radio navigation system that provides short-range guidance to an aircraft, allowing it to approach a runway at night, during bad weather and poor visibility.