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| Chief of the Air Staff | |
|---|---|
 Flag of the Chief of the Air Staff | |
| Indian Air Force | |
| Abbreviation | CAS |
| Member of | Strategic Policy Group |
| Seat | Central Secretariat |
| Appointer |
Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) The Chief of the Air Staff is usually the senior-most Indian Air Force officer of the senior most batch. The appointee for the office is approved by Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister, based on appointee's ability and strong confidence with Prime Minister. |
| Term length | 3 years or at the age of 62, whichever is earlier. |
| Precursor | Commander-in-Chief, Indian Air Force |
| Formation | 1 April 1955 |
| First holder | Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee |
| Deputy | Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Anil Khosla |
| Salary |
 250000 (US$4,000) monthly[1][2] |
Chief of the Air Staff is the professional head and the commander of the Indian Air Force.[3] The position is abbreviated as CAS in the Indian Air Force cables and communication, and is usually held by a four-star air officer of the rank Air Chief Marshal. The current CAS is Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa who took office on 31 December 2016, following the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha.[4][5][6]
The position was held by an Air Commodore (1919–1923), by an Air Vice-Marshal (1923–1929) and by an Air Marshal (1929–1965). In 1966, the position was upgraded to that of an Air Chief Marshal. The highest rank in the India's IAF is Marshal of the Air Force, which is conferred by the President of India only in exceptional circumstances. It has only been given once in January 2002 to Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh. This is a five-star rank and is equivalent to a Field Marshal in the Army and Admiral of the Fleet in the Navy.
List
Commander, Indian Group (1919 to 1920)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Commodore Tom Webb-Bowen CB, CMG (1879–1956) | 20 September 1919 | 27 January 1920 | 129 days |
Air Officer Commanding RAF, India (1920–1938)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Commodore Tom Webb-Bowen CB CMG (1879–1956) | 27 January 1920 | 31 December 1922 | 2 years, 338 days | |
| 2 | Air Vice-Marshal Philip Game CB DSO (1876–1961) | 31 December 1922 | 5 November 1923 | 309 days | |
| 3 | Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Edward Leonard Ellington KCB CMG CBE (1877–1967) | 5 November 1923 | 27 December 1926 | 3 years, 52 days | |
| 4 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond KCB KCMG DSO (1878–1933) | 27 December 1926 | 6 February 1931 | 4 years, 41 days | |
| 5 | Air Chief Marshal Sir John Miles Steel KCB KBE CMG (1877–1965) | 6 February 1931 | 2 March 1935 | 4 years, 24 days | |
| 6 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Edgar Ludlow-Hewitt KCB CMG DSO MC (1886–1973) | 2 March 1935 | 29 September 1937 | 2 years, 211 days | |
| 7 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert de la Ferté KCB CMG DSO (1886–1973) | 29 September 1937 | 27 December 1938 | 1 year, 89 days |
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Air Forces in India (1938–1947)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert de la Ferté KCB CMG DSO (1886–1973) | 27 December 1938 | 6 October 1939 | 283 days | [7] | |
| 2 | Air Marshal Sir John Higgins KCB KBE DSO AFC (1875–1948) | 6 October 1939 | 26 September 1940 | 356 days | — | |
| 3 | Air Marshal Sir Patrick Playfair KCB CB CVO MC (1889–1974) | 26 September 1940 | 6 March 1942 | 1 year, 161 days | — | |
| 4 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Peirse KCB DSO AFC (1892–1970) | 6 March 1942 | 27 April 1943 | 1 year, 52 days | — | |
| 5 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Guy Garrod KCB OBE MC DFC (1891–1965) | 27 April 1943 | 8 March 1944 | 316 days | — | |
| 6 | Air Vice-Marshal Meredith Thomas CSI CBE DFC AFC (1892–1984) | 8 March 1944 | 1 April 1946 | 2 years, 24 days | — | |
| 7 | Air Marshal Sir Roderick Carr KBE CB DFC AFC (1891–1971) | 1 April 1946 | 22 November 1946 | 235 days | — | |
| 8 | Air Marshal Sir Hugh Walmsley KCIE CBE MC DFC (1898–1985) | 22 November 1946 | 15 August 1947 | 252 days | — |
(On 15 August 1947, the unified RIAF was separated into the Royal Indian Air Force and the Royal Pakistan Air Force)
The following tables chronicle the appointees to the office of the Chief of the Air Staff or its preceding positions since the independence of India.[8]
(**Seconded from the Royal Air Force)
Air Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force (1947–1948)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE CB AFC (1895–1982) [lower-alpha 1] | 15 August 1947 | 21 June 1948 | 311 days |
Commander-in-Chief, Royal Indian Air Force (1948–1950)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE CB AFC (1895–1982) [lower-alpha 1] | 21 June 1948 | 25 January 1950 | 1 year, 218 days |
Commander-in-Chief, Indian Air Force (1950–1955)
| № | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE CB AFC (1895–1982) [lower-alpha 1][9] | 26 January 1950 | 23 February 1950 | 28 days | |
| 2 | Air Chief Marshal Sir Ronald Ivelaw-Chapman KBE GCB CB DFC AFC (1899–1978) [lower-alpha 1] | 23 February 1950 | 9 December 1951 | 1 year, 289 days | |
| 3 | Air Marshal Gerald Gibbs CIE CBE MC** (1896–1992) [lower-alpha 1] | 10 December 1951 | 31 March 1954 | 2 years, 111 days | |
| 4 | Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee OBE (1911–1960) | 1 April 1954 | 31 March 1955 | 1 year, 0 days |
Chief of the Air Staff (1955–present)
| No. | Name | Rank | Photo | Appointment Date | Left Office | Decorations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Subroto Mukerjee | Air Marshal |  |
1 April 1955 | 8 November 1960 | OBE |
| 5 | Aspy Engineer | Air Marshal | 1 December 1960 | 31 July 1964 | DFC | |
| 6 | Arjan Singh | Air Chief Marshal (later Marshal of the Indian Air Force) |  |
1 August 1964 | 15 July 1969 | Padma Vibhushan, DFC |
| 7 | Pratap Chandra Lal | Air Chief Marshal | 16 July 1969 | 15 January 1973 | Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, DFC | |
| 8 | Om Prakash Mehra | Air Chief Marshal | 16 January 1973 | 31 January 1976 | PVSM, PV | |
| 9 | Hrushikesh Moolgavkar | Air Chief Marshal | 1 February 1976 | 31 August 1978 | PVSM, MVC, LOM | |
| 10 | Idris Latif | Air Chief Marshal | 1 September 1978 | 31 August 1981 | PVSM | |
| 11 | Dilbagh Singh | Air Chief Marshal | 1 September 1981 | 3 September 1984 | PVSM, AVSM, VM | |
| 12 | Lakshman Mohan Katre | Air Chief Marshal | 3 September 1984 | 1 July 1985 | PVSM, AVSM | |
| 13 | Denis Anthony La Fontaine | Air Chief Marshal | 3 July 1985 | 31 July 1988 | PVSM, AVSM, VSM | |
| 14 | Surinder Mehra | Air Chief Marshal | 1 August 1988 | 31 July 1991 | PVSM | |
| 15 | Nirmal Chandra Suri | Air Chief Marshal | 31 July 1991 | 31 July 1993 | PVSM, AVSM, VSM | |
| 16 | Swaroop Kaul | Air Chief Marshal | 1 August 1993 | 31 December 1995 | PVSM, MVC | |
| 17 | Satish Kumar Sareen | Air Chief Marshal | 31 December 1995 | 31 December 1998 | PVSM, AVSM, VM | |
| 18 | Anil Yashwant Tipnis | Air Chief Marshal | 31 December 1998 | 31 December 2001 | PVSM, AVSM, VM | |
| 19 | Srinivasapuram Krishnaswamy | Air Chief Marshal | 31 December 2001 | 31 December 2004 | PVSM, AVSM, VM & Bar | |
| 20 | Shashindra Pal Tyagi | Air Chief Marshal | 31 December 2004 | 31 March 2007 | PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC | |
| 21 | Fali Homi Major | Air Chief Marshal |  |
31 March 2007 | 31 May 2009 | PVSM, AVSM, SC, VM, ADC |
| 22 | Pradeep Vasant Naik | Air Chief Marshal |  |
31 May 2009 | 31 July 2011 | PVSM, VSM, ADC |
| 23 | Norman Anil Kumar Browne | Air Chief Marshal |  |
31 July 2011 | 31 December 2013 | PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC |
| 24 | Arup Raha | Air Chief Marshal |  |
31 December 2013 | 31 December 2016 | PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC |
| 25 | Birender Singh Dhanoa | Air Chief Marshal |  |
31 December 2016 | Incumbent | PVSM AVSM, YSM, VM, ADC |
Marshal of the Air Force
Only once has this rank ever been given:
- Arjan Singh – Marshal of the Air Force in January 2002 (the highest rank ever given in the history of the Indian Air force). It is equal to a five star General or a Field Marshal in the Army and Admiral of the Fleet in the Navy.
See also
Notes
References
- ↑ "Report of the 7th Central Pay Commission of India" (PDF). Seventh Central Pay Commission, Government of India. http://7cpc.india.gov.in/pdf/sevencpcreport.pdf. Retrieved August 13, 2017.
- ↑ Biswas, Shreya, ed (June 29, 2016). "7th Pay Commission cleared: What is the Pay Commission? How does it affect salaries?". http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/7th-pay-commission-cleared-what-is-pay-commission-how-does-it-effect-our-pockets/1/703452.html.
- ↑ "Ex-Chiefs Gallery". Indian Air Force. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140403061917/http://indianairforce.nic.in/show_exchief_page.php?pg_id=19. Retrieved 2014-08-16.
- ↑ "Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa AVSM YSM VM takes over as Vice Chief of the Air Staff". GOI. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160507122806/http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=122188. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
- ↑ "Press Information Bureau". Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170828013907/http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=%28Release%20ID%20%3A155647%29.
- ↑ "Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa takes over as the 25th Chief of the Air Staff". Archived from the original on 1 January 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170101002330/http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=156043.
- ↑ Chiefs of the Indian Air Force 1931 to 1947 Archived 2 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Chiefs of Air Staff". Bharat Rakshak. Archived from the original on 26 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131226085208/http://bharat-rakshak.com/IAF/Personnel/Chiefs.html. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
- ↑ Chiefs of the Indian Air Force 1947 to Present Archived 26 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine.
External links
- "Chief of The Air Staff". Indian Air Force. http://indianairforce.nic.in/show_page.php?pg_id=18.
Chief of the Air Staff (India) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commander, Indian Group (1919–1920) | | |
| Air Officer Commanding RAF, India (1920–1938) | ||
| Air Officer Commander-in-Chief, Air Forces in India (1938–1947) | ||
| Air Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force (1947–1948) | ||
| Commander-in-Chief, Royal Indian Air Force (1948–1950) | ||
| Commander-in-Chief, Indian Air Force (1950–1955) | ||
| Chief of the Air Staff (1955–present) |
| |
(**Seconded from the Royal Air Force) | ||
{{Wikipedia|
Chief of the Air Staff (India) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commander, Indian Group (1919–1920) | | |
| Air Officer Commanding RAF, India (1920–1938) | ||
| Air Officer Commander-in-Chief, Air Forces in India (1938–1947) | ||
| Air Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force (1947–1948) | ||
| Commander-in-Chief, Royal Indian Air Force (1948–1950) | ||
| Commander-in-Chief, Indian Air Force (1950–1955) | ||
| Chief of the Air Staff (1955–present) |
| |
(**Seconded from the Royal Air Force) | ||
