The crash of the chartered aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has raised concerns about whether the plane narrowly missed being fitted with a satellite-based safety system that could have significantly aided its approach in poor visibility because of a regulatory cut-off missed by just 28 days.
Preliminary scrutiny of the aircraft's registration timeline suggests that the 16-year-old Learjet may not have been equipped with India's satellite-based approach guidance system, GAGAN, because it was registered weeks before a mandate requiring such technology came into force. In aviation terms, it was legally compliant but possibly technologically outdated.
On Wednesday morning, Pawar and four others died when their aircraft crashed nearly 100 metres from the edge of a tabletop runway at Baramati airport in Pune district. The aircraft burst into flames during what officials say was a second landing attempt amid poor visibility.
The death of the 66-year-old leader, widely known as 'Dada' in Maharashtra politics, has left the BJP-led coalition government in shock and thrown fresh uncertainty over the future of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which he headed.
His uncle and NCP founder Sharad Pawar said the crash was an accident and should not be politicised.
At most major airports, aircraft land with the aid of the Instrument Landing System (ILS), a ground-based technology that provides pilots with precise guidance in low visibility. Often described as an "invisible glide path", ILS allows pilots to descend smoothly and predictably even when fog, rain or haze obscures the runway.
But installing ILS is expensive and technically demanding. Smaller regional airports, including Baramati, often do not have it.
To bridge that gap, India developed its own satellite-based augmentation system, GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation). Instead of relying on ground equipment, GAGAN uses satellites to give pilots similar precision guidance during approach and landing, particularly at airports without ILS.
The aircraft itself must be equipped with compatible avionics to "talk" to the satellite system. Without that hardware, GAGAN's guidance simply cannot be used.
Deadline Missed By Weeks
The Learjet involved in Wednesday's crash was registered in India on June 2, 2021. Just 28 days later, a new regulatory requirement came into force mandating that all newly registered aircraft be equipped with satellite-based navigation and approach systems such as GAGAN.
Because the aircraft was registered before that deadline, it was not legally required to carry the upgraded equipment. As a result, aviation experts believe it likely lacked the advanced satellite guidance that could have assisted the crew during the low-visibility approach at Baramati.
The aircraft was operated by VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd and was approximately 16 years old.
Landing The "Old Way"
Baramati Airport is an uncontrolled airfield, meaning it does not have full-time air traffic controllers managing every phase of flight. Instead, traffic information is typically relayed by instructors and pilots from local flying training organisations.
In such environments, and without ILS or satellite-based procedures, pilots rely on conventional "step-down" approaches. Rather than following a continuous, stabilised glide path, the aircraft descends in stages, with the crew required to visually acquire the runway at specific points.
In clear weather, this is routine. In fog or reduced visibility, it becomes far more challenging.
Aviation safety experts describe it as descending a dark staircase -- each step requiring confirmation before moving to the next. Miss one visual cue, and the margin for error shrinks rapidly.
What Happened On Wednesday
According to the Civil Aviation Ministry, the aircraft first established contact with Baramati air traffic control at 8:18 am after being released by Pune approach, about 30 nautical miles inbound.
The crew was advised to descend at their discretion and informed that winds were calm and visibility was approximately 3,000 metres.
On final approach, the pilots reported that the runway was not in sight and initiated a go-around. A go-around involves discontinuing a landing attempt and climbing to reposition for another approach when conditions are not suitable.
Moments later, the crew again reported difficulty seeing the runway. Then, just seconds after stating "runway in sight", the aircraft was cleared to land at 8:43 am.
At 8:44 am, exactly one minute after the final transmission, air traffic personnel observed flames near the threshold of the runway.
The wreckage was later found on the left side of the runway.
