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Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Exit that shocked the nation

Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, four others killed in plane crash; Probe begins into the reasons for the crash Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four other persons on board an aircraft were killed after it crashed near the Baramati airport in Pune district on Wednesday. Pawar had taken off from Mumbai in the morning to address four rallies in the day in Pune district for the February 5 zilla parishad elections. The others killed in the tragedy were Captain Sumit Kapoor, who had a...

Exit that shocked the nation

Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, four others killed in plane crash; Probe begins into the reasons for the crash Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four other persons on board an aircraft were killed after it crashed near the Baramati airport in Pune district on Wednesday. Pawar had taken off from Mumbai in the morning to address four rallies in the day in Pune district for the February 5 zilla parishad elections. The others killed in the tragedy were Captain Sumit Kapoor, who had a flying experience of 15,000 hours, co-pilot Capt. Shambhavi Pathak with 1,500 hours of flying, Personal Security Officer (PSO) Vidip Jadhav and flight attendant Pinky Mali. The government released a statement detailing the sequence of events that led to the crash and Pawar's death. The aircraft, a Learjet, was cleared for landing in Baramati on Wednesday morning after a go-around due to poor visibility, but having finally received a clearance it did not give any read-back' to the ATC, and moments later burst into flames on the edge of the runway. In aviation parlance, a go-around is a standard procedure where a pilot discontinues a landing attempt and initiates a climb to fly another approach. It is used when a landing cannot be completed safely due to factors like poor weather, an unstable approach, or traffic on the runway. It is a proactive safety measure rather than an emergency. In aviation, a readback is a crucial safety procedure where a pilot repeats back the essential parts of a message or instruction received from Air Traffic Control (ATC). It acts as a "closed-loop" communication system, ensuring that the controller's instructions were heard and understood correctly by the flight crew. The aircraft was trying to land amid poor visibility, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu told reporters in Pune. The statement by his ministry recounted the final minutes of the ill-fated Learjet 45 belonging to VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd that crashed, leading to the death of all five persons on board, including Pawar. Fatal Flight The ill-fated aircraft was a Bombardier Learjet 45, a twin-engine business jet commonly used for corporate and charter travel. Designed to carry between six and nine passengers, the Learjet 45 has a range of approximately 2,000 nautical miles and is powered by twin turbofan engines. The aircraft involved in the crash belonged to a charter operator and was being used for a non-scheduled private flight.According to preliminary information from aviation authorities and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) sources, the aircraft encountered severe weather conditions while approaching Baramati. Dense fog enveloped the Pune–Baramati region at the time, drastically reducing visibility and complicating the landing procedure. Probe Begins 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. "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. 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. Ajit Pawar's last rites will be held with full state honours on Thursday in Baramati. Union Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to attend the funeral, which will be held at Vidya Pratishthan ground at 11 am. The Maharashtra government on Wednesday declared three days of state mourning across state till January 30 as a mark of respect to Ajit Pawar. The national flag will be flown at half-mast on all buildings where it is flown regularly. There will be no official entertainment during the mourning period. “Ajit's death was a big shock for Maharashtra, which has lost a hardworking and efficient leader. This loss is irreparable. Not all things are in our hands. A stand was floated from Kolkata that there is some politics involved in this incident. But there is nothing like this. There is no politics in it. It was an accident. I request not to bring politics into it.” Sharad Pawar, President, NCP (SP)

‘No need to panic and flee’

Pune based tourist currently staying in a hotel in Srinagar says life is normal in rest of Kashmir

Mumbai: With reports of tourists panicking and fleeing Kashmir with the most viable flight available are pouring in, tourists who are in Kashmir right now paint a different picture of the current situation in the valley. Speaking to The Perfect Voice, Kalpana Chavan who travelled to Kashmir last week as a part of the itinerary of a travel company called Vihar travels is currently residing in a hotel in Srinagar. Chavan said that life is absolutely normal in Kashmir.


A narrow escape

Interestingly, Chavan had left Pahalgam along with the group for Gulmarg at 2 pm on April 22, Tuesday, exactly half an hour before the attack took place. She heaved a sigh of relief while being sympathetic towards those who went through the nightmare that the Baisaran valley was a part of their itinerary same time on April 21, just a day before the attack took place. Chavan said, “Only one of our group members went to Baisaran valley on the afternoon of Monday, a day prior to the attack. Others were children and mostly senior citizens. They were not keen to venture the trek or horse ride, so we all stayed back at the hotel. Next day we left Pahalgam, and within an hour we got the news of the attack.”


Chavan who is on the tour at the moment has 32 tourists in the group including her says that schools, markets, sightseeing, everything is functioning smoothly as usual. Chavan says, “No need to panic and start fleeing because a terror attack can happen in any part of the country. Security is tight, there is patrolling every 100 metres. We went to Gulmarg, did our sight seeing as per plan. We went to the market for shopping. We played cricket. I don’t see a reason to head back. Although the crowd has decreased, but it’s not deserted.”


Locals fear economic setback

Chavan says ladies are freely visiting independently and shopping at the malls and there is absolutely no need to worry. However, local residents for first time seem angry about the attack, specifically because their income is completely based on tourism and the attack on tourists is a major set back for them. “We have visited shops at almost all the locations planned in the itinerary. All the salesmen, shop owners have been expressing their anguish about the attack. They said that terrorist attacks pose a direct threat to their source of income and jeopardise their livelihood”, said Chavan.


Chavan and her group will be returning back to Pune day on Saturday after covering all the sight-seeing spots as per schedule.

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