Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit to be next IAF chief, four decades of combat including Operation Safed Sagar, Op Sindoor

The government on Tuesday appointed Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit as the next Chief of the Air Staff, handing over the command of the Indian Air Force to a fighter pilot with nearly four decades of operational, test-flying, command and strategic experience.

Dixit, currently serving as Vice Chief of the Air Staff, will become the 29th Chief of the Air Staff as Air Chief Marshal from the afternoon of October 31, succeeding Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, who retires the same day.

Born on December 9, 1966, Dixit was commissioned into the IAF’s fighter stream on December 6, 1986. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College in Bangladesh and the National Defence College, he has accumulated more than 3,500 hours of flying on more than 20 types of aircraft. His experience includes the Mirage-2000, MiG variants, HPT-32, An-32, Avro, Kiran, Jaguar, IL-78, Hawk and Tejas. He is also an Experimental Test Pilot and a Qualified Flying Instructor.

His career has included participation in major operations and exercises, including Operation Safed Sagar during the Kargil conflict, Operation Rakshak, Cope India and Operation Sindoor. His operational experience, combined with his work on aircraft development and acquisition, gives him an unusually broad understanding of the IAF’s combat and modernisation requirements.

Dixit’s career has been closely associated with the Mirage-2000. As commanding officer of No. 9 Squadron, he oversaw its re-equipment with the fighter and subsequently commanded a frontline fighter base in the Western Sector. He commanded a premier fighter training base in the Southern Sector, and under his command, his unit was awarded the best among all commands.

His test-pilot background has also shaped his engagement with India’s indigenous aerospace programmes. At the Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment in Bengaluru, he served with the Flight Test Squadron and was involved in indigenous upgrade and development programmes, including avionics upgrades for the Jaguar and MiG-27.

Additionally, as the Director of Air Staff Requirements, he played a key role in planning and conducting the trials for the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) programme.

The new Air Chief has also spent considerable time in the IAF’s acquisition and planning machinery. He served as Principal Director of Air Staff Requirements and later as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Projects) and Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Plans). He was also Air Defence Commander of Southern Air Command, Senior Air Staff Officer at South Western Air Command and Deputy Chief of the Air Staff.

His appointment also comes with substantial experience in joint military planning. Dixit served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Central Air Command from September 2024 before becoming Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee, in May 2025.

At the Integrated Defence Staff, he played a crucial role in strengthening jointness among the three services, with several joint doctrines, orders and initiatives developed during his tenure.

He was serving as CISC during a period of heightened operational and tri-service activity, including Operation Sindoor, before taking over as Vice Chief of the Air Staff in July 2026. His experience at the IDS is likely to be important as the armed forces move towards greater integration and jointness. (

Dixit’s record also reflects the IAF’s growing emphasis on technology and self-reliance. As Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, he headed projects involving future technologies and modernisation, while the Defence Ministry noted his focus on Atmanirbharta (Self-Reliance).

As Vice Chief, he has been at the senior-most level of the service as it confronts the twin challenges of maintaining operational readiness and accelerating the induction of new-generation platforms. (

His service has been recognised with four major decorations — the Vayu Sena Medal in 2006, Vishisht Seva Medal in 2011, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023 and Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2026.

Dixit takes over the IAF at a critical juncture. The service is grappling with fighter squadron shortages, long acquisition timelines and the need to rapidly integrate drones, artificial intelligence, electronic warfare, space-based capabilities and network-centric warfare into its combat architecture.

At the same time, major programmes such as the Tejas, Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft and the proposed acquisition of additional multirole fighters will require sustained attention.

With experience ranging from flying frontline fighters and testing aircraft to acquisition planning, air defence, theatre-level command and tri-service integration, Dixit’s elevation signals continuity but also places a technically experienced officer at the helm of the IAF as it prepares for the next phase of air warfare.