Maharashtra was left in shock on Wednesday morning after a tragic aviation accident claimed the life of Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Ajit Pawar. The senior leader was travelling
from Mumbai to Baramati when the privately operated aircraft he was aboard crashed while attempting to land. The incident occurred just minutes before the scheduled landing and killed all those on board and triggering a massive emergency response.
Apart from Ajit Pawar, the crash also claimed the lives of two pilots, security personnel and crew members. Among the deceased was Captain Shambhavi Pathak, the young First Officer who was reportedly flying the aircraft at the time.
‘She Was My Daughter’s Friend’: YouTuber Mourns Captain Shambhavi Pathak’s Death
A social media post remembering Captain Shambhavi Pathak has now surfaced online where a YouTuber named Sudhir revealed that she was his daughter’s childhood friend.
Sharing a photograph of the young pilot on X (formerly Twitter), Sudhir wrote, “Along with the Deputy CM of Maharashtra, a young pilot Capt. Shambhavi Pathak the Pilot of the plane also lost her life in the Plane crash. She was a brilliant student, a great daughter, a very loving sibling and a very good friend. This is a personal loss as she was my daughter’s friend from KG class. Prayers.”
See The Post Here
Along with the Deputy CM of Maharashtra, a young pilot Capt. Shambhavi Pathak the Pilot of the plane also lost her life in the Plane crash. She was a brilliant student, a great daughter, a very loving sibling and a very good friend. This is a personal loss as she was my… pic.twitter.com/pbNJ3LfGif
— SUDHIR (@seriousfunnyguy) January 28, 2026
Who Was Captain Shambhavi Pathak?
Captain Shambhavi Pathak was serving as the First Officer with VSR Ventures, a Delhi-based non-scheduled air transport operator. According to her LinkedIn profile, Pathak completed her schooling at Air Force Bal Bharati School between 2016 and 2018.
She later pursued commercial pilot and flight crew training at the New Zealand International Commercial Pilot Academy. In 202, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautics, Aviation and Aerospace Science and Technology from the University of Mumbai.
She also worked as an Assistant Flying Instructor at the Madhya Pradesh Flying Club, where she held a Flight Instructor Rating (A).
Captain Pathak held multiple aviation licences and certifications. These included a Commercial Pilot Licence issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in May 2020 and a Commercial Pilot Licence from the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand issued in November 2019.
She had also completed Jet Orientation Training for the A320 aircraft from Jordan Airline Training and Simulation and held an Aviation Security (AVSEC) certification from SpiceJet Limited.
About The Ajit Pawar Plane Crash
Flight tracking records indicate that the aircraft departed Mumbai at around 8:10 AM for the short hop to Baramati. As it began descending towards the destination roughly 35 minutes later, the jet encountered trouble during the final phase of landing. It subsequently went down in a hilly area nearly 20 kilometres from Baramati airport.
