Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit takes charge as 29th Chief of Air Staff

NEW DELHI: Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit on Saturday took charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force, succeeding Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, who retired from service on October 31.

Dixit, who was serving as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff, assumed the top position in the force after a career spanning nearly four decades. Before taking charge, he served in several key operational and strategic positions, including Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Central Air Command.

Commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force on December 6, 1986, Dixit is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Command and Staff College in Bangladesh and the National Defence College.

An accomplished fighter pilot, he has more than 3,500 hours of flying experience across several aircraft, including the Mirage-2000, MiG variants, Jaguar, Kiran, IL-78, Hawk and Tejas. He is also an Experimental Test Pilot and a Qualified Flying Instructor.

During his service career, Dixit has been associated with several operations and exercises, including Operation Safed Sagar, Operation Rakshak and Operation Sindoor. He has also commanded a frontline fighter air base in the Western Sector and a premier fighter training base in the Southern Sector.

His contributions have been recognised through several service awards, including the Vayu Sena Medal in 2006, Vishisht Seva Medal in 2011, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023 and Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2026.