The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said no one survived the crash, which occurred as the plane was approaching Baramati, Pawar’s political stronghold, where he was travelling to campaign in local body elections.

Pawar, 66, was on board the aircraft along with two staff members and two crew, the regulator said in an initial statement.

“No person on board has survived,” it said.

In a political context, Pawar was a senior leader who backed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party in Maharashtra and led a faction that split in 2023 from the opposition Nationalist Congress Party.

Turning to the circumstances of the crash, media reports said the aircraft had departed from Mumbai and attempted an emergency landing at Baramati, about 250 km (155 miles) away.

Flight tracking website Flightradar24 said the aircraft was making a second approach to Baramati Airport when it went down on Wednesday morning.

The plane, a Learjet 45 operated by private firm VSR Ventures, crashed at around 8:45 a.m., killing Pawar and four other people on board.

According to reports, the aircraft lost control while landing and burst into flames after impact.

Video footage showed thick smoke rising from burning wreckage scattered across an open field near the airport.

An eyewitness described the final moments before the crash.

“When the aircraft descended, it seemed it would crash, and it did. It then exploded and burst into a massive fire. 4-5 more explosions followed,” the eyewitness said.

He added that local residents rushed to the scene but were unable to rescue anyone.

“People came and tried to pull out passengers from the aircraft. Due to the huge fire, they could not help,” he said.

Separately, a senior official of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed that five people were on board, including Pawar, his personal security officer, an attendant, and two crew members — the pilot in command and the first officer.

Earlier on Wednesday, Pawar had left Mumbai at around 8 a.m. and was scheduled to address four election rallies in Baramati ahead of the local body polls.