Amar Preet Singh | |
|---|---|
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| 28thChief of the Air Staff | |
| Assumed office 30 September 2024 | |
| President | |
| Preceded by | Vivek Ram Chaudhari |
| 47thVice Chief of the Air Staff | |
| In office 1 February 2023 – 30 September 2024 | |
| Chief of Air Staff | Vivek Ram Chaudhari |
| Preceded by | Sandeep Singh |
| Succeeded by | Sujeet Pushpakar Dharkar |
| Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command | |
| In office 1 July 2022 – 31 January 2023 | |
| Chief of Air Staff | Vivek Ram Chaudhari |
| Preceded by | Richard John Duckworth |
| Succeeded by | Ravi Gopal Krishana Kapoor |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1964-10-27)27 October 1964 (age 60) Delhi, India |
| Alma mater | Air Force Academy |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  India |
| Branch/service |  Indian Air Force |
| Years of service | 21 December 1984 - Present[1] |
| Rank |  Air Chief Marshal |
| Unit | No. 22 Squadron |
| Commands |
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| Service Number | 17695[1] |
| Awards | |
Air Chief MarshalAmar Preet Singh,PVSM,AVSM is a serving four starair officer of theIndian Air Force. He is the current and 28thChief of the Air Staff (CAS).[2] He took over as the 28th CAS, succeeding Air Chief MarshalVivek Ram Chaudhari, on 30 September 2024.[3] He was previously serving as the 47thVice Chief of the Air Staff.[4] He was previously serving as theAir Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command,[5] prior to that he served as the Senior Air Staff Officer at theEastern Air Command.[6]
Amar Preet Singh is an alumnus of S.B.M. School, Delhi and later theNational Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and theAir Force Academy, Dundigal. He is also an alumnus ofDefence Services Staff College, Wellington andNational Defence College,New Delhi.[7]
Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh was commissioned into the fighter stream of theIndian Air Force on 21 December 1984 from theAir Force Academy,Dundigal. In a distinguished career spanning across 38 years, he has tenanted various staff and instructional appointments. He has flown a variety of fighter and trainer aircraft with more than 5000 hours of operational flying. He is a Qualified Flying Instructor and an experimental test pilot with service flying on a variety of fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft.[4] AsWing Commander, he commanded theNo. 22 squadron, then made up of theMiG-27fighter aircraft.[8] He spearheaded theMiG-29 Upgrade Project Management Team atMoscow, Russia and was instrumental in flight testing of theHAL Tejas. He served as the Chief Test Pilot at Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment.
After being promoted to the rank ofAir Vice Marshal, he served as the Project Director at National Flight Test Center,Aeronautical Development Agency and as theAir Officer Commanding of 2 Air Defence Control Centre atGandhinagar.[1]
After being promoted to the rank ofAir Marshal, he was appointed as the Senior Air Staff Officer of theEastern Air Command atShillong. A year later, on 1 July 2022, he took over as theAir Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command succeedingAir MarshalRichard John Duckworth who superannuated from service on 30 June 2022.[5][9]
On 1 February 2023,Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh took over as the 47thVice Chief of the Air Staff succeedingAir MarshalSandeep Singh when the latter superannuated from service on 31 January 2023.[10] AsVCAS, he was at the forefront of the largest ever multinational AirExercise Tarang Shakti held in India that was concluded in September 2024. In a significant message on the importance and the efficiency of India’s indigenous Light Combat AircraftTejas, he flew extensively during the drill including a sortie withVCOASLieutenant GeneralN. S. Raja Subramani andVCNSVice AdmiralKrishna Swaminathan.[11]
On 21 September 2024, theGovernment of India appointedAir Marshal Amar Preet Singh as the nextChief of the Air Staff.[12] On 30 September 2024,Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh took over as the 28thChief of the Air Staff succeedingAir Chief MarshalVivek Ram Chaudhari who superannuated after more than four decades of service.[2][3] In February 2025, duringAero India 2025, Singh criticizedHindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for delays in delivering of the Tejas fighter aircraft.[13] He has also supported theprocurement of indigenously designed defence systems over imports from international companies.[14]
Air Marshal Singh is a keen squash player. He is married to Mrs Sarita Singh. The couple is blessed with a son and a daughter.[15]
During his career, he has been awarded with the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2019[16] and Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023.[17]
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| Insignia | Rank | Component | Date of rank |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Pilot Officer | Indian Air Force | 21 December 1984[1] |
 | Flying Officer | Indian Air Force | 21 December 1985[1] |
 | Flight Lieutenant | Indian Air Force | 21 December 1989[1] |
 | Squadron Leader | Indian Air Force | 21 December 1995[1] |
 | Wing Commander | Indian Air Force | 14 May 2001[1] |
 | Group Captain | Indian Air Force | 05 Nov 2007[1] |
 | Air Commodore | Indian Air Force | 30 Dec 2010[1] |
 | Air Vice Marshal | Indian Air Force | 01 Aug 2016[1] |
 | Air Marshal | Indian Air Force | 1 February 2021 (AOC-in-C from 1 July 2022)[1] |
| Air Chief Marshal (CAS) | Indian Air Force | 30 September 2024[18] |
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Chief of Air Staff 30 September 2024 - Present | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by | Vice Chief of Air Staff 1 February 2023 - 30 September 2024 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command 1 July 2022 – 31 January 2023 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Senior Air Staff Officer Eastern Air Command 1 February 2021 – 30 June 2022 | Succeeded by |