Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh, the Indian Air Force Chief, was appointed Chief of the Air Force on Saturday, September 21, according to an announcement made by the Centre. On September 30, 2024, Singh took over for Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari, who retired. As of the afternoon of September 30, 2024, appointed Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh, PVSM, AVSM, last served as Vice Chief of the Air Force, as the next Chief of the Air Force, in the rank of Air Chief Marshal.
Who is Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh?
Born on October 27, 1964, Air Marshal Singh was inducted into the Indian Air Force’s Fighter Pilot stream in December 1984. Throughout his almost four decades of meritorious service, he has held several instructional, command, force, and foreign posts.
The air officer has more than 5,000 hours of flight time on various fixed and rotary-wing aircraft and is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, National Defence College, and National Defence Pilot College. He is also a certified flying teacher.
Life and Work of Singh
Among Air Marshal Singh’s many accomplishments is his leadership of a fighter squadron and a frontline air post. He was a test pilot who managed the flight testing of the Indigenous Light Combat Aircraft, Tejas and headed the MiG-29 upgrade project management team in Moscow. He also worked as the project director for flight testing at the National Flight Test Centre.
His prior positions included senior air force officer at the Eastern Air Command and air defence commander at the South Western Air Command. He was the top air officer of Central Air Command before being promoted to vice chief.
Leadership at a Critical Time
The LCA Mk-1A program, an upgraded variant of the Mk-1 aircraft, experienced delays when Singh took up his new position, which caused the Indian Air Force to worry about how it may affect combat effectiveness.
“Air Marshal Singh consistently excelled in all his duties,” said a former commander who served as Commander in Chief of the EAC. He said Singh has a “dynamic personality and an exceptionally high degree of professionalism.”
The former officer said that the EAC’s assignments were always completed efficiently and to everyone’s satisfaction because of Singh’s meticulous attention to data. Among them were the creation of battle plans to make the most efficient use of available resources and humanitarian aid and disaster relief (HADR) efforts during times of peace.
Personal Interest
Air Marshal Singh is well-known not just for his professional accomplishments but also for his culinary prowess. Whenever he can, he makes time to prepare meals. His wife, Dolly Singh, has greatly helped him, and the two of them are often spotted at social events wearing matching attire.
Air Marshal Singh enjoys working out and playing squash in his spare time. He was the designated trek leader when stationed in Shillong for several years. According to the insider, one of Singh’s priorities is maintaining a healthy lifestyle and flying fighter planes. He is a passionate pilot. He recently flew the light combat aircraft Tejas at the Tarang Shakti exercise in Jodhpur with the vice chiefs of the army and navy to show his support for indigenisation. Nevertheless, despite its importance, he stressed that no one should jeopardise India’s defence in pursuing self-reliance.
In Detailed Military Career
After graduating from the Air Force Academy at Dundigal on December 21, 1984, Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh was commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force.
- He has held several staff and instructional posts over his 38-year stellar career.
- He has over five thousand flying hours and piloted various fighter and training planes.
- He has experience flying fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft and is a qualified flight instructor and experimental test pilot.
- During his tenure as Wing Commander, he oversaw the No. 22 squadron.
- He was a crucial figure in the HAL Tejas flying tests and led the MiG-29 Upgrade Project Management Team in Moscow, Russia.
- He was the head test pilot at the Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment.
- After being appointed Air Vice Marshal, he held the positions of Air Officer Commanding of 2 Air Defence Control Centre at Gandhinagar and Project Director at the National Flight Test Centre, Aeronautical Development Agency.
Upon his promotion to Air Marshal, he assumed the role of Senior Air Force Officer of the Eastern Air Command in Shillong. He took over as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Central Air Command one year later, on July 1, 2022, replacing Air Marshal Richard John Duckworth, who retired on June 30, 2022.
Successor to Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, who superannuated on January 31, 2023, Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh assumed the role of 47th Vice Chief of the Air Force on February 1, 2023. During the biggest ever global Air Exercise, Tarang Shakti, which took place in India in September 2024 and was led by him as VCAS, the exercise ended. Along with VCOAS Lieutenant General N. S. Raja Subramani and VCNS Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, he flew extensively throughout the exercise, sending a strong statement about the value and effectiveness of India’s indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas.
