On December 21st, 1984, the Air Marshal received his commission into the IAF’s fighter stream. He attended the National Defense College, the Defense Services Staff College, and the National Defense Academy. He has more than 4900 hours of flying experience and is both a qualified flying instructor and an experimental test pilot.
His operational tenures include being the Flight Commander and Commanding Officer of a MiG-27 Squadron and Air Officer Commanding of an air base. As a test pilot, he has served in ‘Aircraft and System Testing Establishment’ in various ranks and capacities. He led the MiG-29 Upgrade Project Management Team at Moscow, Russia; he was the LCA Project Director (Flight Test) at ‘National Flight Test Centre’ and Air Defence Commander at South Western Air Command. Prior to assuming the present appointment, he was Senior Air Staff Officer at Eastern Air Command.
For his distinguished service, the Air Marshal was awarded with Ati Vishisht Seva Medal by the President of India on 26 Jan 2019.
On assuming appointment, the AOC-in-C was presented a ceremonial Guard of Honour. He then laid a wreath at the CAC War Memorial, paying tribute to the brave Air Warriors who laid down their lives serving the nation.
