The report comes exactly a month after the Learjet-45 aircraft owned by VSR Ventures crashed at Baramati airfield on January 28 killing Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra Ajit Pawar and four others.
Exactly a month after the plane crash of Ajit Pawar, the Air Accidents Investigation Bureau (AAIB), which is investigating the case, released its 22-page preliminary report on Saturday. The Learjet-45 aircraft owned by VSR Ventures crashed on January 28, near Baramati, killing Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra Pawar and four others. The report has revealed information about the circumstances at the time of the accident and technical errors by describing the exact moments of the accident. According to the report, the plane first hit a tree and then crashed into the ground some distance from the runway.
The cockpit and cabin of the plane were completely destroyed in the accident and later by fire that also damaged the flight data recorder due to heat. However, the investigation agency has been able to download its raw data for investigation.
US to Help Decode CVR
According to AAIB, the United States’ National Transportation Safety Board will play a key role in downloading and analysing the Cockpit Voice Recorder data, with technical assistance also being sought from Honeywell, the manufacture of the recorder. According to investigators, data from the SSFDR has already been successfully downloaded and is currently under analysis. The SSCVR data will be extracted with the assistance of the NTSB in line with the Standards and Recommended Practices under ICAO Annex 13. The NTSB has appointed an Accredited Representative along with technical advisers to participate in and support the probe.
In its interim safety recommendations, the crash probe agency also called for tighter regulatory oversight of operations at smaller airfields, a review of licensing them, and urgent upgrades to landing and meteorological (MET) infrastructure.
“It is recommended that DGCA may take necessary measures to enhance the landing aids along with basic MET facility at these airports to cater for large number of chartered flying (including VIP flights) being carried out at these airports. It is recommended that DGCA may check the feasibility of licensing these aerodromes for conduct of safe and regulated flying operations,” the report said.
