Who has been appointed as the Deputy Chief of Air Staff as of February 2023?

The correct answer is A P Singh.

In News

• Air Marshal AP Singh PVSM AVSM took over as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS) on 01 February 2023.

Key Points

• On the occasion of taking over of the office of VCAS, he laid a wreath at the National War Memorial to honour those Armed Forces personnel who have made the supreme sacrifice for the nation.
• Following this, he was accorded a ceremonial Guard of Honour at Air Headquarters (Vayu Bhavan).
• An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College, the Air Marshal was commissioned into the Fighter Stream of the IAF on 21 December 1984.
• The Air Officer is a Qualified Flying Instructor and an Experimental Test Pilot with more than 5000 hours of flying experience on a variety of fixed and rotary wing aircraft.
• During his career, the officer has commanded an operational fighter squadron and a frontline air base.
• As a test pilot, he led the MiG-29 Upgrade Project Management Team at Moscow, Russia.
• The Air Marshal is a recipient of Param Vishisht Seva Medal and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal.

Additional Information

• The Chief of the Air Staff (India), known also as the Air Force Chief, has been the title of the professional head of the Indian Air Force since 1950.
  • The CAS is a statutory position in the Indian Armed Forces held by the most senior officer of the Air Force, and is usually the highest ranking air officer of the Indian Armed Forces unless the Chief of Defence Staff is an officer of the aerial branch.
  • The current CAS is Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari who took office on 30 September 2021, following the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria.