Mumbai : The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has commenced a Special Audit of VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd – which owned the ill-fate Learjet 45 aircraft that crashed in Baramati on Jan. 28, killing Deputy Chief Minister Ajit A. Pawar and others. The Special Audit, ordered by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) started on Feb. 4, and is likely to be completed shortly. The DGCA said it would release the Preliminary Report of the air-crash within 30 days of the occurrence (by Feb. 28), as per ICAO norms, and the Final Report will follow in due course. The DGCA team will conduct a comprehensive review of the regulatory compliances, operational control systems, maintenance practices, crew training standards, safety management systems and monitoring of the Black Box. Rohit Pawar vindicated The move comes as a victory for Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MLA Rohit R. Pawar, who had launched a massive campaign raising suspicions on the crash, questioning if it was an accident or a conspiracy, demanding grounding of the VSRVPL fleet and removal of MoCA Minister K. Rammohan Naidu till the investigations are completed. Subsequently, many other leaders of various parties including the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) headed by the late Ajit Pawar, Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), besides members of the Pawar clan also joined the clamour for a transparent probe. The MoCA said that the findings of the Special Audit, due to end soon, would be reviewed and necessary action shall be initiated in accordance with the DGCA’s Enforcement Policy and Procedures Manual. Audit of other operators Besides, multiple surveillance of VSRVPL were carried out across areas such as flight safety systems, flight duty time limitations, maintenance compliance (CAR M and CAR 145), documentation and station facilities, which were addressed and closed. Now, the MoCA has directed the aviation watchdog to carry out special audits of other major non-scheduled operators and aerodromes engaged in VIP|VVIP operations. “These audits are being conducted in phases and appropriate enforcement action will be taken wherever required. During 2025, the DGCA conducted 51 regulatory audits of non-scheduled operators,” said the MoCA. On the ill-fated Learjet 45 (VT-SSK), the government said that the Baramati accident is being probed by Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) strictly in accordance with the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2025 and the Standards and Recommended Practices contained (SARP) in ICAO Annex 13. Rohit Pawar had voiced apprehensions on these aspects and sought to know how the company was allowed to continue operations in India when it had been banned in Europe in the past. Two recorders on Learjet 45 Black Box The aircraft – with five on-board - was equipped with two independent flight recorders, the Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR), manufactured by L3 Communications, which has been successfully downloaded at AAIB’s facility in New Delhi, inaugurated in 2025. The Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) sustained thermal damage. As it is manufactured by Honeywell, USA, technical assistance has been sought from the State of Design/Manufacture. However, there are few takers for the theory of damage to the CVR, which - as Rohit Pawar pointed out several times - can withstand temperatures of around1100 C. The MoCA said that the AAIB’s investigation is technical and evidence-based, involving systematic examination of wreckage, operational and maintenance records and laboratory testing of components where required.
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