'Rejected take-off was carried out': How the Baramati trainer aircraft went off the runway

A private trainer aircraft operated by a flying academy skidded off the runway at the Baramati airstrip in Maharashtra’s Pune district on Sunday. The incident occurred during a training exercise, but the pilot and cadet on board escaped unharmed. Pune Rural Superintendent of Police (SP) Sandeep Singh Gill said the VT-SEX aircraft moved off the extended paved surface on the right side of the runway after failing to come to a complete stop while taxiing.

Captain Chirag Shashikant Doifode and cadet Abhijeet Jundre were on board the aircraft when the incident took place. Both occupants were safe, and no injuries were reported. According to Gill, the aircraft crossed the threshold of Runway 29 and travelled approximately 20 feet beyond the end of the runway during the exercise.

"The aircraft initially entered the runway through Link Bravo, lined up at the threshold of Runway 29, and carried out a rejected take-off. Thereafter, the aircraft was lined up at the threshold of Runway 11, where another rejected take-off was carried out. During the course of this exercise, the aircraft could not be brought to a complete stop on the runway and continued beyond the threshold of Runway 29," he said.

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The aircraft was owned and operated by Carver Aviation, a private flying school based in Baramati. The latest incident comes months after a major aviation tragedy at the Baramati airfield. On January 28, a private charter aircraft carrying then Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four other people crashed, killing everyone on board.

Baramati also witnessed another trainer aircraft incident on May 13, when an aircraft operated by a different private aviation company crash-landed near the airstrip following a technical snag. No casualties were reported in that incident. The latest mishap once again puts the spotlight on aviation safety and training operations at the Baramati airfield, although no casualties were reported in Sunday's incident.