After Ajit Pawar's death in Baramati crash, technical snag found in chopper that was to fly Maharashtra minister Pankaja Munde

Pankaja Munde

• Technical issue delayed Pankaja Munde's helicopter trip for election campaign.
• DGCA grounded the Agusta 109 helicopter after detecting rotor blade issues
• Munde continued campaigning despite the delay and concerns over flight safety

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A technical snag was detected in a helicopter scheduled to transport Maharashtra minister Pankaja Munde for election campaigning hours before the planned flight, an airport official said on Tuesday.

The issue was identified late on Monday night, shortly before the BJP leader was to travel by helicopter to Latur for campaigning related to the upcoming Zilla Parishad polls, the official said.

According to officials, Munde arrived in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Monday aboard a chartered aircraft and later used the helicopter for poll-related travel during the day. During a routine inspection conducted later that night, the aviation company operating the helicopter обнаружed technical problems and informed authorities at Chikalthana airport.

The helicopter had been scheduled to ferry Munde to Latur at around 11 am on Tuesday. However, her journey was delayed by approximately two hours due to the technical issue, the official said.

Speaking to reporters, Munde said the helicopter was old but that she did not raise any objection and continued with her travel plans. She said that flying has caused anxiety among party leaders since the tragic death of NCP leader Ajit Pawar in a plane crash on January 28.

Munde has been campaigning extensively across the Marathwada region for the February 7 Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections and has addressed multiple rallies in the region.

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was killed along with four others after a chartered aircraft crashed in Baramati in Pune district last week.

Late on Tuesday night, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation issued a note directing the precautionary grounding of the Agusta 109 helicopter that was to ferry Munde and detailed the technical issue identified during inspection.

According to the regulator, the helicopter had operated four sectors before the issue was detected. After its last landing at Aurangabad airport at approximately 1700 hrs on February 2, the Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, during post-flight checks, noticed “excessive play in the pitch operating link rod of one main rotor blade”.

As a result, the engineer flagged the issue and did not clear the helicopter for further operations pending repairs. The DGCA said the charter-indenting agency was informed at around 2000 hrs, and the helicopter’s scheduled sorties for the following day were cancelled at approximately 2100 hrs.