IAF Chief RKS Bhadauria retires after 42 years of service; Air Marshal Chaudhari new chief

Shortly after being announced as the succeeding Chief of Air Staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF), Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari Chaudhari on Thursday took over the apex position from Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria. Earlier, he was in charge of the Ladakh sector at the time of crisis with China and now took over after Bhadauria retired from service.

Chaudhari's taking over the position of Chief of Air Staff comes at a time when India is still in a standoff position with China over tensions in borders regions owing to the Afghanistan situation. Furthermore, he will also be responsible for the operationalisation of modern air defence systems like the S-400 from Russia. Along with that, he will be responsible for the modernisation of the fighter aircraft fleet as the IAF soon plans to induce indigenous and foreign origin in fighter aircraft in the coming days. 

Meanwhile, Air Marshal RKS Bhadauria retired after 42 years of service. He played a major role during his service years and was also the architect of two mega fighter aircraft deals which included 36 Rafales and 83 Mark1A indigenous Tejas jets. Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria, who assumed office on September 30, 2019, retired on September 30. Having clocked over 4,250 hours of flying, Bhadauria has experience on over 26 different types of fighter jets and transport aircraft. 

Recruitments in the Indian Air Force

Earlier, in the month of September new recruitment was also announced in the Indian Air Force along with various positions. After Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari was appointed as the Chief of Air Staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF), Air Marshal Sandeep Singh has now been appointed to his position as the next Deputy Chief of the Indian Air Force. Succeeding Chaudhari, Sandeep Singh who is currently working as the Air Officer, Commanding-in-Chief, South Western Air Force Command will assume the position by September end as VR Chaudhari takes over the position of Chief. 

Meanwhile, Air Marshal Balabhadra Radha Krishna has been appointed to the position of new Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee and Air Marshal Amit Dev has been appointed as the next chief of Western Air Command.

Image: ANI