Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit on Saturday assumed charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF), succeeding Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh, who retired after 42 years of distinguished service.
An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Air Chief Marshal Dixit was commissioned into the Fighter Stream of the Indian Air Force on December 6, 1986. His career spans four decades, with extensive experience in operations, flight testing, capability development and joint staff assignments.
An accomplished fighter pilot, Qualified Flying Instructor and Experimental Test Pilot, he has logged more than 3,300 hours of flying on various aircraft, including the Mirage-2000, different MiG variants, Jaguar and several transport aircraft.
Air Chief Marshal Dixit has played a significant role in the modernisation of the Indian Air Force. He was instrumental in finalising the Jaguar and MiG-27 upgrade projects and completing the Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) and Final Operational Clearance (FOC) activities of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk-I Tejas.
His operational command assignments include commanding a Mirage-2000 squadron, a Forward Base Support Unit in the Western Sector and Air Force Station Bidar, a key fighter training establishment of the IAF.
He has also served as Air Defence Commander at Southern Air Command, Senior Air Staff Officer at South Western Air Command and Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, overseeing key capability development and procurement initiatives.
Subsequently, he commanded the Central Air Command as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief and served as Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee during Operation Sindoor.
Before assuming his new role, he was serving as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff.
Air Chief Marshal Dixit is a graduate of the Defence Services Command and Staff College, Bangladesh, and the National Defence College, New Delhi.
In recognition of his distinguished service, he has been conferred the Vayu Sena Medal (VM), Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM), Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) and Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM).
-PIB
