Ajit Pawar, 4 Others Die in Baramati Plane Crash; Lady Pilot Shambhavi Pathak Identified

• Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and four others, including First Officer Shambhavi Pathak, died in a plane crash while traveling from Mumbai to Baramati for an election rally.
• The accident, which occurred between 8:45 AM and 9:15 AM, is initially attributed to fog and a technical glitch during landing at Baramati Airport.
• First Officer Shambhavi Pathak, who had been with VSR Ventures since 2022, received her commercial pilot training from the New Zealand International Commercial Pilot Academy in 2018-2019.
• The Learjet 45 aircraft, registration VT-SSK, belonged to Delhi-based VSR Ventures; the company had another plane crash at Mumbai Airport in September 2023.
• The DGCA has confirmed all five deaths and ordered a high-level investigation into the incident.

Why It Matters: Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and four others, including pilot Shambhavi Pathak, died in a Baramati plane crash.