Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit Appointed as New Chief of the Indian Air Force

The Government of India has appointed the current Vice Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit (PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM), as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff. He will assume the office of Air Chief Marshal on the afternoon of October 31, 2026. The current Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, is scheduled to retire from his position on October 31, 2026.

Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit was born on December 9, 1966, and joined the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force on December 6, 1986. Prior to becoming the Vice Chief of Air Staff, he served as the Chairman of the Committee of Chiefs of Staff (CISC) under the Chief of Defence Staff at the Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (HQ IDS) and as the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Central Air Command.

Regarding his academic qualifications, he is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, the Defence Services Command and Staff College (Bangladesh), and the National Defence College. He possesses over 3,500 hours of flying experience on aircraft including the Mirage-2000, various versions of the MiG, Kiran, Jaguar, IL-78, Hawk, and Tejas. Additionally, he is an experimental test pilot and a certified flight instructor.

Throughout his career spanning nearly four decades, Air Marshal Dixit has been actively involved in critical operations and military exercises, such as Operation Safed Sagar, Operation Rakshak, and Operation Sindur. He has also commanded a frontline fighter airbase in the Western Sector and a major fighter training airbase in the Southern Sector.

In recognition of his distinguished service, he was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal in 2006, the Vishisht Seva Medal in 2011, the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023, and the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2026.