From Bipin Rawat to Ajit Pawar: Top Indian personalities killed in air crash since 2021

An air ambulance carrying seven people crashed in Jharkhand's Chatra district on Monday evening. The crash is the latest in a series of aviation accidents in recent years that have claimed the lives of some of India's most prominent military and political figures, including General Bipin Rawat and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

The Beechcraft C90 aircraft, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, was flying from Ranchi to Delhi when it crashed near Simaria in Kasaria Panchayat, according to aviation authorities. The aircraft took off at about 7.10 pm.

"The aircraft was airborne from Ranchi at 19:11 IST. After establishing contact with Kolkata at19:34 IST, the aircraft lost communication and RADAR contact with Kolkata at approximately 100 NM South-East of Varanasi," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.

The aircraft had lost contact with air traffic control around 20 minutes after takeoff. Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash.

Fatal accidents that killed Bipin Rawat, Vijay Rupani, Ajit Pawar

The incident follows several fatal aviation accidents since 2021 involving senior Indian leaders.

On December 8, 2021, India's first Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat, and 11 others died when an Indian Air Force Mi-17V5 helicopter crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.

The helicopter was flying from Sulur Air Base to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington when it crashed about 10 kilometres from its destination in the Nilgiri Hills.

A tri-services Court of Inquiry into the crash attributed the crash to an unexpected change in weather, resulting in pilot disorientation and the helicopter hitting a surface. 

"The accident was a result of the entry into clouds due to an unexpected change in weather conditions in the valley. This led to spatial disorientation of the pilot, resulting in Controlled Flight into Terrain," a statement from the Indian Air Force (IAF) said.

On June 12, 2025, former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was among 241 people killed when Air India Flight AI-171 crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad.

The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, bound for London Gatwick with 242 people on board, crashed into a medical college hostel in Meghani Nagar minutes after departure from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport.

Rupani, who was seated in 2D, was travelling to visit his daughter. The aircraft, heavily loaded with fuel for the long-haul flight, caught fire after impact. 

More recently, on January 28, 2026, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar died when a chartered Learjet 45XR crashed near Baramati Airport. According to reports, the pilots couldn't spot the runway during their first approach to land, and so they did a go-around and came for a second attempt at landing. 

The aircraft was trying to land amid poor visibility, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said. 

Baramati has an 'uncontrolled airfield' (which generally means it lacks a proper instrument landing system to guide aircraft during low-visibility operations), and traffic information is provided by the instructors/pilots from the Flying Training Organisations at Baramati.

The preliminary report on the crash will be out on or before February 28, Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol said on Sunday. 

These accidents are among several aviation incidents in India over the past decade involving both military and civilian aircraft, including the 2009 helicopter crash that killed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy.