‘Uncontrolled’ Baramati airport lacks basic navigation facilities, fire tender
The airport, lacking navigation aids and fire services, was deemed unsuitable for VIP operations, highlighting safety concerns after Ajit Pawar's jet crash.
It may be the bastion of one of India’s most powerful political families.
But, the airport in Maharashtra’s Baramati town, where a Learjet 45 carrying Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and four others crashed on Wednesday morning, lacked basic navigation aids and a fire tender, and had an air traffic control run by pilot cadets from two local flying schools.
Indian airports are categorised under four buckets. Category A airports are uncontrolled, where no air traffic control service is provided; Baramati falls under this category. Category B airports are partially controlled, with limited ATC or AFIS services, such as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and Jalgaon. Category C airports are controlled airports operating with procedural ATC, where aircraft are separated using procedures rather than radar, such as Pune. Category D airports are fully controlled airports with radar-based ATC, including major hubs like Mumbai and Delhi.
“There are about 150 uncontrolled airports in India. They have a basic runway and no ATC tower or ATC frequency,” said Mihir Bhagvati, aviation expert and a DGCA-approved examiner for pilots.
{{/usCountry}}“There are about 150 uncontrolled airports in India. They have a basic runway and no ATC tower or ATC frequency,” said Mihir Bhagvati, aviation expert and a DGCA-approved examiner for pilots.
{{/usCountry}}“The airport also lacks navigational aids like VOR [a ground-based radio navigation beacon that allows an aircraft with a receiver to determine their position and navigate it] or PAPI [Precision Approach Path Indicator] which tells whether the aircraft is high or low on approach,” said Sanjay Karve, who retired in 2025 as Maharashtra aviation director.
{{/usCountry}}“The airport also lacks navigational aids like VOR [a ground-based radio navigation beacon that allows an aircraft with a receiver to determine their position and navigate it] or PAPI [Precision Approach Path Indicator] which tells whether the aircraft is high or low on approach,” said Sanjay Karve, who retired in 2025 as Maharashtra aviation director.
{{/usCountry}}Karve also confirmed that the airport did not have an independent metrological facility and relied on data from Pune airport. On Wednesday morning, the area was covered in dense fog with a visibility of 3,000 metres, people manning the ATC said on anonymity.
{{/usCountry}}Karve also confirmed that the airport did not have an independent metrological facility and relied on data from Pune airport. On Wednesday morning, the area was covered in dense fog with a visibility of 3,000 metres, people manning the ATC said on anonymity.
{{/usCountry}}The air traffic control at Baramati is jointly managed by pilot cadets from Baramati’s two private aviation academies, Redbird Aviation and Carver Aviation, who man the facility on alternate days.
On Wednesday, on account of a VIP landing, the ATC was being manned by a flight instructor from Carver Aviation. “It was the turn of Carver Aviation to manage the ATC,” said Pramesh Parikh, the accountable manager of Carver Aviation.
The airport did not have its own fire tender, said airport incharge Shivaji Taware.
“We had called one fire tender from Baramati Municipal Council as stand by for the VIP landing. When we realised that the plane had crashed, we called for more fire tenders from the Baramati Municipal Council and the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation and arrived soon after,” he added. An ambulance was kept on standby.
The airport, constructed by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation and inaugurated in 1996, mainly serviced the two flying schools and small private planes.
“There are only four to five air traffic movements weekly from other airports to Baramati. Carver Aviation and Redbird Flight Training Academy, which have nine and 16 aircraft respectively, operate from morning till late evening (using chargeable lights on runway) for training purposes,” said Taware.
“The runway at Baramati is small. Unlike big city airports where the runway width is between 75 to 80 metres, Baramat runway’s width is 30 metres. This runway also has a shallow hump which can alter a pilot’s perception. In my opinion it’s not suitable for VIP operations,” Karve said.
Generally, a 30m runway is enough for business and executive aircraft and regional aircraft, such as turboprops.
Captain Naufil Karnalkar, who learnt flying at Baramati and worked as a flying instructor for five years before joining Qatar Airways, said, “The visibility was poor on Wednesday morning and there are no navigational aids at the runway which need to be installed. The ATC too can be better managed. The Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) has not done anything about smoothening the runway surface either.”
Until August 2025, the airport was managed by the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Airport Developers. Taware said, “We had taken over the airport on August 19 as there were several lacunae in its management. In the last few months, Ajit Pawar as the guardian minister of Pune district, had himself taken many meetings to upgrade this airport. He had asked for basic facilities like PAPI (Precision Approach Path Indicator –– a system of lights that provide visual guidance to the runway) and night landing and a regular ATC.”
A spokesperson of the Anil Ambani-led group said that the five airports in Maharashtra were handed back to the state government.
