Ajit Pawar Plane Crash: Black Box Recovered; ‘Oh S***’ Heard in Final Moments

A Learjet 45 crashed near Baramati on January 28, killing Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and four others during a poor-visibility landing; the black box has been recovered.

Investigators have recovered the black box from the Learjet 45 that crashed near Baramati airport, killing Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others on January 28, 2026, officials said. The device, containing both the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), will be analysed to uncover what happened in the final moments before the aircraft crashed during a landing attempt.

The crash occurred during a second landing attempt in poor visibility, according to early findings from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Flight tracking shows the Learjet lost contact with radar as it approached Baramati, and eyewitnesses reported the aircraft was unstable shortly before impact.

Audio captured from the cockpit voice recorder is believed to include the crew’s final words. A senior DGCA official confirmed that just moments before the crash, the pilots were heard saying "oh s***" over the radio as they struggled to maintain control. The Learjet crashed short of the runway, erupting into a violent fireball and killing all on board.

Those aboard included Ajit Pawar (66), his personal security officer Vidip Jadhav, flight attendant Pinky Mali, pilot Sumit Kapur, and co-pilot Shambhavi Pathak.

The aircraft, operated by VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd, had been cleared to land after reporting the runway in sight, but the absence of a readback of landing clearance and subsequent sudden loss of control point to critical uncertainty during the final approach.

Forensic teams are now analysing the black box data to determine whether weather conditions, visibility challenges, human factors or other technical issues played a role. The findings are expected to shape the official accident report and could have implications for safety protocols at smaller, uncontrolled airfields like Baramati.