While the plane crash carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar sent shockwaves across the country, two lesser-known passengers on board – Shambhavi Pathak and Pinki Mali – also lost their lives in the tragedy.
According to FlightRadar data, the plane took off from Mumbai at 8:10 am and disappeared from radar around 8:45 am. The accident occurred at approximately 8:50 a.m., a police official said.
Who were Shambhavi Pathak and Pinki Mali?
Shambhavi Pathak was one of the pilots on board the ill-fated Learjet 45 that crashed on 28 January. According to a report by The Times of India, Shambhavi Pathak served as the first officer and flew alongside Chief Pilot Kapoor.
Pathak was the daughter of an army officer and had a strong academic background. She studied at the Air Force Bal Bharati School and later graduated in Aviation, Aeronautics and Aeronautical Science and Technology from the University of Bombay.
She also completed flight training at the New Zealand International Commercial Pilot Academy.
According to media reports, Pinki Mali accompanied Ajit Pawar to Baramati as an air hostess in a chartered plane.
A resident of Bhainsa village in Kerakat tehsil of Uttar Pradesh’s Jaunpur district, Mali has been working as an air hostess for the past eight years, mostly on charter flights, Amar Ujala said.
She got married four years ago.
Speaking to NDTV after news of the accident broke, Mali’s mother said she spoke to her daughter every day but had not received a phone call from her on the day of the accident.
How did it happen
A Learjet 46 operated by Delhi-based VSR Ventures made an emergency landing at the Baramati airport early today.
There were five passengers on board the Learjet 45 at the time of the incident – Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Maharashtra Ajit Pawar, his PSO, one escort and two crew members (pilot-in-command and first officer).
Ajit Pawar, 66, traveled from Mumbai to Baramati to address public meetings to campaign for the February 5 Farasad zilla elections in Maharashtra.
He is survived by his wife Sunetra, a Rajya Sabha member, and two sons, Parth and Jay.
Superintendent of Police Sandip Singh Gill said the plane caught fire after the crash and was accompanied by an explosion. “The people on board were immediately taken to hospital,” he said.
