India, Jan. 30 -- Captain Sumit Kapoor, one of the pilots aboard the doomed jet that crashed in Maharashtra's Baramati on Wednesday, was not supposed to fly the plane on the day of the accident, his friends reportedly said.

Kapoor was the pilot-in-command on the Learjet 45 plane that crashed, killing him, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, his security officer Vidip Jadhav, first officer Captain Shambhavi Pathak and flight attendant Pinky Mali.

Kapoor's friends were quoted as saying by NDTV that he was not scheduled to fly the plane and was filling in for a pilot who got stuck in traffic.

Amid speculation over what may have led to the deadly crash, Kapoor's friends backed him and his flying skills. One of them even said that Kapoor's so...