New Delhi:Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh was appointed as the next Chief of the Indian Air Force on Saturday. Currently serving as the Vice-Chief of the Air Staff, he will assume the role on September 30 when the incumbent, Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari, retires.
Commissioned into the fighter pilot stream of the IAF in December 1984, Air Marshal Singh brings nearly four decades of service. He is a Qualified Flying Instructor and an Experimental Test Pilot with over 5,000 hours of flying experience across various fixed and rotary-wing aircraft.
Throughout his career, he has held numerous key roles, including commanding an operational fighter squadron and a frontline air base. Notably, he led the MiG-29 Upgrade Project Management Team in Moscow and was the project director for flight testing the Light Combat Aircraft, Tejas, at the National Flight Test Centre.
Air Marshal Singh has also served as the Air Defence Commander at South Western Air Command and Senior Air Staff Officer at Eastern Air Command. Before taking over as Vice- Chief, he was the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Central Air Command. He will become the fourth officer from the Sikh community to lead the Indian Air Force.
Interestingly, Air Marshal Singh is a coursemate of Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, both having graduated from the 65th course of the National Defence Academy.
