The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) announced on Tuesday that it has requested special support to retrieve data from the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) of the Learjet 45 that crashed near Baramati last month. The tragic accident on January 28 claimed the lives of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others. The plane, owned by VSR Ventures, was fitted with two independent flight recorders. Both were exposed to intense heat for a long time during the crash and suffered fire damage. AAIB confirmed that the Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR), made by L3-Communications, has been successfully downloaded at its Flight Recorder Laboratory. However, the Cockpit Voice Recorder, manufactured by Honeywell, is still under detailed technical examination. "Assistance has been sought from the Accredited Representative of the State of Manufacture for specialised support in data retrieval," said the AAIB, noting that the state of manufacture is the United States. The agency urged all stakeholders to avoid speculation and said it is following strict technical and procedural protocols to ensure a thorough, impartial, and evidence-based investigation. The probe follows the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017 and the International Civil Aviation Organization's Annex 13 standards. Last week, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu announced that the preliminary report on the VT-SSK Learjet crash would be released soon.