Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit Takes Charge as 29th IAF Chief

Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit assumed charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff on Saturday, 31 October 2026, in the afternoon, a Defence Ministry statement said. He succeeds Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, who retired the same day after 42 years of service. Dixit was serving as Vice Chief of the Air Staff; the Ministry of Defence had announced his appointment on 6 October.

A Fighter Pilot and Test Pilot at the Top

Dixit is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and was commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force in 1986. He is an experimental test pilot and qualified flying instructor with more than 3,500 flying hours, and holds the PVSM, AVSM, VM and VSM.

The Ministry said he worked on the Jaguar and MiG-27 upgrade projects and on the Initial and Final Operational Clearance of the Tejas LCA Mk-I. He has commanded a Mirage-2000 squadron, a Forward Base Support Unit in the Western Sector and Air Force Station Bidar, a major fighter training base.

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From Joint Staff to Air Headquarters

Before returning to Air Headquarters as Vice Chief, Dixit served as Chief of Integrated Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee, and as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Central Air Command. His predecessor spoke on how fighter assets would be shared under joint commands in an earlier interview; see our report on AP Singh on theatre commands.

Open Questions on His Term

The Ministry statement did not give a fixed end date for the new chief’s tenure, and it carried no quotes from Dixit on his priorities. Theatre commands and fighter-fleet strength are among the issues the Air Force has discussed publicly in recent months.

Source: Based on reporting by All India Radio and Outlook India.

Image: All India Radio.