Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari, PVSM AVSM VM ADC is an air officer of the Indian Air Force. He currently serves as the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS). He took over as the 24th CAS succeeding Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria on 30 September 2021.[3] He earlier served as the 45th Vice Chief of the Air Staff and as the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Air Command.[4][5][6][7]
Vivek Ram Chaudhari | |
---|---|
24th Chief of the Air Staff | |
Assumed office 30 September 2021 | |
President | |
Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
Preceded by | R. K. S. Bhadauria |
45th Vice Chief of the Air Staff | |
In office 1 July 2021 – 30 September 2021 | |
Preceded by | Harjit Singh Arora |
Succeeded by | Sandeep Singh |
Personal details | |
Born | [1] | 4 September 1962
Nationality | Indian |
Children | 2 |
Parent | Rambhau Ganapat Chaudhari (Father) |
Military service | |
Allegiance | India |
Branch/service | Indian Air Force |
Years of service | 29 December 1982 - Present |
Rank | Air Chief Marshal |
Unit | No. 28 Squadron |
Commands | Chief of the Air Staff Western Air Command Lohegaon Air Force Station 8 Forward Base Support Unit No. 28 Squadron |
Battles/wars | Operation Meghdoot Kargil war |
Service number | 16978[2] |
Awards | Param Vishisht Seva Medal Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Vayu Sena Medal |
Chaudhari was born to Rambhau Ganapat Chaudhari. His mother was a school headmistress. His grandfather was a teacher at the Zila Parishad school at Koli, a village in Hadgaon taluka.[8][9] He studied in primary school at Nanded. The family moved to Hyderabad as his father started a company there. He thus did his schooling from BHEL Higher Secondary School, Ramachandrapuram, Hyderabad.[10][citation needed] He subsequently moved to Pune and enrolled in a military school. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (61'st Course), the Air Force Academy and the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington (DSSC).[11]
Chaudhari was commissioned in the Indian Air Force as a fighter pilot on 29 December 1982. He is a Category 'A' qualified flying instructor, and Instrument Rating Instructor and examiner. He has a flying experience of over 3800 hours on various fighter aircraft including MiG-21, MiG-23MF, MiG-29 and Su-30MKI. He was also a pioneer member of the Surya Kiran Aerobatic Display Team.[12] As a fighter pilot, he flew operational missions during Operation Meghdoot and Operation Safed Sagar.[13]
Chaudhari has commanded the MiG-29 squadron No. 28 Squadron IAF at Jamnagar and the forward base in Awantipora in Jammu and Kashmir. He also served as the chief operations officer of the Srinagar Air Force Station.[14]
As an air commodore, he served as the Air assistant to the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik. He subsequently commanded the Lohegaon air base in Pune. He has served as an instructor at DSSC Wellington as well as Defence Services Command and Staff College at Lusaka, Zambia.
After promotion to Air Vice Marshal, Chaudhari served as the Assistant Chief of Air Staff Operations (Air Defence) at Air headquarters and as the Deputy Commandant at the Air Force Academy, Dundigul.[15] He subsequently was appointed the Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Personnel Officers) and later as Deputy Chief of Air Staff at Air HQ.[16][17] On 1 October 2019, he was appointed Senior Air Staff Officer of the Eastern Air Command in Shillong. After a short stint, on 1 August 2020, he was appointed Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Air Command.[11]
On 21 September 2021, the Government of India appointed Chaudhari as the next Chief of the Air Staff after the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria on 30 September 2021.[18]
During his career, Chaudhari has been awarded the Vayu Sena Medal in 2004, the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2015 and the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2021 for his service.[17][2][19]
Insignia | Rank | Component | Date of rank | Service Location |
---|---|---|---|---|
Flying Officer | Indian Air Force | 29 December 1983[20] | ||
Squadron Leader | Indian Air Force | 29 December 1993[20] | ||
Wing Commander | Indian Air Force | 17 May 1999[20] | 28 Sqn | |
Group Captain | Indian Air Force | 1 March 2006[20] | 1Wg, 8 FBSU | |
Air Commodore | Indian Air Force | 1 September 2009[20] | CAC, Air HQ, 2 Wg | |
Air Vice Marshal | Indian Air Force | 1 April 2013[20] | Air HQ, AFA, Air HQ | |
Air Marshal | Indian Air Force | 1 October 2018 (AOC-in-C from 1 August 2020)[20] | 28 Sqn, Air HQ, EAC, WAC, Air HQ | |
Air Chief Marshal (CAS) |
Indian Air Force | 30 September 2021[21] | Air HQ |
He is married to Neeta Chaudhari. They have two sons.[15] His son Mihir Chaudhary is also an officer (Squadron Leader) in Indian Air Force.[22]
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)