Reports of a fatal Learjet crash involving Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar at Baramati airport have reignited debate over the safety of India’s tabletop runways, prompting aviation experts to examine whether runway design played a role or whether operational decisions were the decisive factor.
Baramati Airport is among six tabletop runways in India, alongside Kozhikode, Mangalore, Lengpui, Shimla and Pakyong, where elevated terrain leaves little margin for error during landing and overrun scenarios.
A senior pilot familiar with Baramati’s airstrip dismissed suggestions that the tabletop configuration alone could explain such an accident. “At the end of the day, a tabletop runway is still a runway,” he said. “What matters is the threshold, the touchdown point, and the available runway length.”
The pilot pointed instead to visibility and approach discipline, noting that reported visibility of about 3,000 metres would fall below recommended limits. “Descending below circuit altitude without the runway in sight is a cardinal mistake,” he said.
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Flight-tracking data cited in reports suggested the aircraft was attempting a second approach when it went down near the runway edge. Experts said such phases demand a fully stabilised aircraft, warning that wing stall and sudden loss of lift can occur if speed and descent are misjudged.
Former naval pilot and aviation expert Commander Naveen Pandita underlined the risks posed by tabletop runways, citing the “black hole effect”, an optical illusion that can cause pilots to underestimate altitude in poor visibility. “If you don’t stop exactly on the line, there’s no margin for error,” he said.
Past disasters at Kozhikode in 2020 and Mangalore in 2010, while attributed largely to pilot error, have long fuelled concerns that tabletop designs amplify the consequences of mistakes, especially at airports lacking advanced landing aids.
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