By Col Vijayant Thakur (Retd) · Defence faculty, The Cavalier
The Indian Air Force is the air arm of the armed forces. It defends Indian airspace, supports the Army and Navy, moves troops and relief supplies by air, and keeps watch from the ground and from the sky. It is the service the AFCAT, the NDA Air Force wing and the CDS Air Force Academy routes lead to, and a board that asks "tell us about your chosen service" expects the basics cold: when it was raised, how it was named, where it is run from and how it is divided.
This page is the front door to the Air Force section of our Defence GK library: history, Air Headquarters and the Chief, identity, the seven commands, an organisation chart, and a guide to every page in the section.
Origins: Eight Wapitis to an Air Force
The Air Force was raised on 8 October 1932. It started small. The Ministry of Defence's own account records the first operational flight on 1 April 1933: six RAF-trained officers and 19 Havai Sepoys with four Westland Wapiti IIA biplanes, forming "A" Flight at Drigh Road, Karachi, the nucleus of No. 1 (Army Co-operation) Squadron. Karachi is now in Pakistan.
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 8 Oct 1932 | The Indian Air Force is established (celebrated as Air Force Day) |
| 1 Apr 1933 | "A" Flight takes to the air at Drigh Road with four Westland Wapiti IIA aircraft |
| 1936 | "A" Flight sees its first action from Miranshah, in North Waziristan, in support of Army operations |
| Mar 1945 | King George VI's honour for wartime service: the prefix "Royal". The force becomes the Royal Indian Air Force. Nine squadrons were active by the end of 1944 |
| 15 Aug 1947 | Partition: some units and equipment pass to the new Pakistani air force. Air Headquarters is set up in New Delhi |
| Jan 1950 | India becomes a republic and the force drops "Royal": it is now the Indian Air Force |
| 1955 | Maintenance Command is established |
| 1971 | The Air Force Academy at Dundigal is inaugurated (January); the IAF flies over 4,000 sorties in the war |
| 1999 | Operation Safed Sagar: air support at high altitude in the Kargil conflict |
| 2016 | The indigenous Tejas light combat aircraft is inducted |
The "Royal" prefix lasted from 1945 to 1950: it was granted in March 1945 and dropped in January 1950 when India became a republic. Sources also differ on the first flight: some say five pilots, while the Ministry of Defence gives six officers and 19 Havai Sepoys. UPSC follows official figures, so quote the Ministry's version.
The wars, operations and exercises are on their own pages: Kargil, Operation Sindoor and air exercises.
Air Headquarters, the Chief and the Chain of Command
Air Headquarters is Vayu Bhawan in New Delhi. It is the staff and policy centre of the service. It plans, equips and sets doctrine; the commands operate.
- Chief of the Air Staff (CAS): ACM Ashutosh Dixit has held the appointment since 31 October 2026, the 29th CAS according to PIB. The Chief is an Air Chief Marshal, commands the service and sits on the Chiefs of Staff Committee. Earlier holders are on Chiefs of the Air Staff.
- Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS): Air Mshl Inderpal Singh Walia has held the post since 1 November 2026. The Vice Chief is an Air Marshal and the Chief's deputy at Air HQ.
- Chief of Defence Staff (CDS): Gen N S Raja Subramani heads the Department of Military Affairs. The CDS does not command the Air Force. See the CDS page and theatre commands, the plan to bring the single-service commands together.
- Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (CISC): Air Mshl Tejinder Singh is a three-star officer, drawn in rotation from the three services, who runs the tri-service staff.
The President is Supreme Commander, and the Raksha Mantri, Shri Rajnath Singh, heads the Ministry of Defence. Executive control runs through the Government and the CAS, as it does for the other two services.
The CAS runs the Air Force. The CDS heads the Department of Military Affairs and has no operational command of any service. The President is the Supreme Commander. Rank is a clue: the CAS is an Air Chief Marshal, and the VCAS and every AOC-in-C are Air Marshals.
Identity: Motto, Ensign and Air Force Day
Motto. The Air Force's motto is Nabhah Sprisham Deeptam, "Touch the sky with glory", taken from the Bhagavad Gita (chapter 11, verse 24). The English spelling of the Sanskrit varies between books; the meaning is what UPSC asks.
Air Force Day, 8 October. It marks the raising of the service in 1932. The 91st anniversary, on 8 October 2023, was at Prayagraj, and 8 October 2026 was the 94th.
Ensign. On 8 October 2023 at Prayagraj the Chief unveiled a new Air Force ensign, ending the one adopted in 1950 after the "Royal" prefix was dropped. The new one adds the Air Force crest in the top right corner, towards the fly.
The Seven Commands at a Glance
Air HQ sits above seven commands: five operational and two functional (Training and Maintenance). An operational command controls the squadrons and bases in its region. A functional command trains people or keeps aircraft flying. Each is headed by an AOC-in-C, an Air Marshal.
| Command | Type | Headquarters | Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Air Command | Operational | New Delhi | Air Mshl George Thomas |
| Eastern Air Command | Operational | Shillong (Upper Shillong). Moved there from Kolkata after the 1962 war | Air Mshl Mehtab Singh Deswal |
| Central Air Command | Operational | Prayagraj | Air Mshl Tarun Chaudhry |
| South Western Air Command | Operational | Gandhinagar. Named in 1980, first at Jodhpur | Air Mshl PV Shivanand |
| Southern Air Command | Operational | Thiruvananthapuram. Raised on 19 July 1984 | Air Mshl Jasvir Singh Mann |
| Training Command | Functional | Bengaluru | Air Mshl S Shrinivas |
| Maintenance Command | Functional | Nagpur. Established in 1955 | Air Mshl Yalla Umesh |
Eastern Air Command's area of responsibility includes a 6,300 km international boundary with China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh (PIB, 7 October 2023). Our Air Force commands page goes through them one by one.
- 1 Jun 2026: a new AOC-in-C takes over Central Air Command.
- 1 Jul 2026: new AOCs-in-C take over Southern and South Western Air Commands.
- 31 Oct 2026: a new Chief takes over as the 29th CAS; see our explainer on the new Chief and Vice Chief.
- 1 Nov 2026: a new AOC-in-C takes over Eastern Air Command.
The Army has a Northern Command; the Air Force has no Northern Air Command. Its five operational commands are Western, Eastern, Central, South Western and Southern.
How the Air Force Is Built: Air HQ to Flight
The chain from the Chief to the aircraft is short. Below the commands are wings and air force stations, and the flying squadrons that operate the aircraft are made of flights. Command tasks include air defence and strike, airlift, helicopter support and the ground radar and missile network. The air defence page covers that network and the flying squadrons page lists the aircraft.
- Air Headquarters, New DelhiChief of the Air Staff · Air Chief Marshal
- 5 operational commandsWestern · Eastern · Central · South Western · Southern · AOC-in-C, Air Marshal
- Wings and air force stationsthe bases and the units on them
- Squadronsthe units that fly the aircraft
- Flightssub-units of a squadron
- Squadronsthe units that fly the aircraft
- Wings and air force stationsthe bases and the units on them
- 2 functional commandsTraining (Bengaluru) · Maintenance (Nagpur) · AOC-in-C, Air Marshal
- 5 operational commandsWestern · Eastern · Central · South Western · Southern · AOC-in-C, Air Marshal
The ranks and numbering at each level are on stations, wings and squadrons, and the rank ladder from Pilot Officer upward is on ranks and insignia. For how an Air Force rank lines up with the Army and Navy, see rank equivalence.
The Navy and Army organise differently: see the Indian Navy, Indian Army and Indian Coast Guard sections.
Ways In: AFCAT, NDA and CDS
There are three common routes to an Air Force commission, and all three finish with the Air Force Selection Board and training at the Air Force Academy. AFCAT is for graduates who want flying, technical or ground duty branches. The NDA Air Force wing is for 12th-pass candidates, who train at the National Defence Academy first. The CDS exam also has Air Force Academy vacancies for graduates. Our career in the Indian Air Force page gives the branches and the AFCAT papers give the pattern. The training establishments page shows where each stage happens, and the women in defence forces page covers the first NDA women cadets, among them those at the Air Force Academy.
Guided Tour: Every Page in the Air Force Section
Read in this order if you are starting from zero.
| Page | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Air Force Commands | The five operational and two functional commands, with headquarters and AOC-in-C, and the pages for each group |
| Stations, Wings and Squadrons | Command to wing to station to squadron to flight, the rank at each level, and how squadrons are numbered and nicknamed |
| Flying Squadrons | The fleet by type, with the source and date of every count, and sanctioned versus actual squadron strength |
| Air Defence | The Air Force's air-defence role, the networked command and control, and the layered defence idea |
| Ranks and Insignia | Flying Officer to Air Chief Marshal, the Marshal of the Indian Air Force and the airmen ranks |
| Garud Commando Force | The Air Force's own special-forces unit, its role, training and the gallantry award it has won |
| Display Teams | Surya Kiran, Sarang and the Akash Ganga skydiving team |
| Chiefs of the Air Staff | The full list, the first Indian chief, Arjan Singh and the current Chief |
| Training Establishments | The Air Force Academy, the flying and technical training schools and the staff and warfare colleges |
Aircraft and weapons also appear on missiles of India. The date and place of every service's day are on defence days and dates, and mottos are on mottos and war cries.
Exam pins
- Raised 8 October 1932, which is why Air Force Day falls on 8 October.
- First operational flight: 1 April 1933, "A" Flight of No. 1 Squadron at Drigh Road, Karachi, with four Westland Wapiti biplanes, six RAF-trained officers and 19 Havai Sepoys.
- The prefix "Royal" was granted in March 1945 and dropped in January 1950 on becoming a republic.
- Motto: Nabhah Sprisham Deeptam, "Touch the sky with glory", from Chapter 11, verse 24 of the Gita.
- Air Headquarters is Vayu Bhawan, New Delhi; the head is the Chief of the Air Staff, an Air Chief Marshal.
- Seven commands: five operational and two functional (Training, Bengaluru; Maintenance, Nagpur). There is no Northern Air Command.
- HQs: Western, New Delhi; Eastern, Shillong; Central, Prayagraj; South Western, Gandhinagar; Southern, Thiruvananthapuram.
- Eastern Air Command moved to Shillong after the 1962 war (it was earlier in Kolkata); Maintenance Command dates from 1955.
- Arjan Singh, Marshal of the Air Force (January 2002), is the Air Force's only five-star officer.
- The Air Force's operation in the Kargil conflict was Operation Safed Sagar (1999).
- A new ensign was unveiled on 8 October 2023 at Prayagraj.
Asked in past papers
The Air Force shows up in papers in three ways: ranks, defence infrastructure and exercises, and equipment bought from other countries.
Which one among the following is the equivalent rank of 'Wing Commander' of Indian Air Force in Indian Army?
(a) Lieutenant (b) Captain (c) Lieutenant Colonel (d) Colonel
Answer: (c). A Wing Commander ranks with a Lieutenant Colonel and a Commander in the Navy. The tempting wrong option is (d): a Group Captain is the one who equals a Colonel. The stored key for this paper is blank; the answer is checked against the rank tables.
The Vijaynagar Advanced Landing Ground of the Indian Air Force, which was reopened recently, is located in
(a) Jammu and Kashmir (b) Arunachal Pradesh (c) Karnataka (d) Himachal Pradesh
Answer: (b). Vijaynagar is in the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh, near the Myanmar border, and the Air Force reopened its resurfaced runway in 2019. Advanced landing grounds serve the border regions, which is why options (a) and (d) look right.
From which one of the following countries has India procured the S-400 Triumf air defence missile system?
(a) United Kingdom (b) U.S.A. (c) France (d) Russia
Answer: (d). India signed the S-400 deal with Russia in 2018. Rafale comes from France and the Apache from the U.S.A., which is what makes the other countries tempting.
'Exercise Desert Knight — 21' is a bilateral air exercise between the Indian Air Force and the Air Force of which one of the following countries?
(a) USA (b) France (c) Britain (d) Israel
Answer: (b). It was held in January 2021 with the French Air and Space Force. India also flies exercises with the U.S.A. and Britain, so check the exercise name against the partner.
Rank equivalence and the commands are recall questions that never change, so learn them from our ranks and commands pages. Equipment and exercise questions change each cycle, so follow our daily defence notes and practise on the NDA and CDS papers.
Practice MCQs (with answers)
- The first operational flight of the Indian Air Force, in April 1933, was formed at
- Ambala
- Drigh Road, Karachi
- Kanpur
- Hyderabad
- With which aircraft did the Air Force's first flight begin?
- Hawker Hurricane
- Supermarine Spitfire
- Westland Wapiti
- Dakota
- The Air Force dropped the prefix "Royal" when
- India became a republic
- India became independent
- the country was partitioned
- the Air Force Academy was inaugurated
- Which of the following is not a command of the Indian Air Force?
- Southern Air Command
- Central Air Command
- Maintenance Command
- Northern Air Command
- The headquarters of Maintenance Command is at
- Bengaluru
- Gandhinagar
- Nagpur
- Prayagraj
- Who is the only Marshal of the Indian Air Force?
- Arjan Singh
- Subroto Mukerjee
- O. P. Mehra
- P. C. Lal
1-b, 2-c, 3-a, 4-d, 5-c, 6-a. Q1: Drigh Road is in Karachi, which is now in Pakistan. Q2: Hurricane and Spitfire came in the war years. Q3: the prefix was granted in March 1945 and dropped in January 1950, on becoming a republic; independence in 1947 did not remove it. Q4: the five operational commands are Western, Eastern, Central, South Western and Southern; Northern Air Command does not exist. Q5: Training Command is at Bengaluru and Maintenance Command at Nagpur. Q6: Arjan Singh was made Marshal of the Air Force in January 2002.
Where to Go Next
Boards ask "know your service", so read our SSB interview tips with this page open. Then revise AFCAT defence awareness, and read our explainers on the Air Force's structure and Arjan Singh. Cavalier's AFCAT coaching batches cover general awareness, military aptitude, reasoning, numerical ability and English, and prepare you for the Air Force Selection Board. NDA and CDS aspirants who want the Air Force can start from our NDA and CDS batches, and our Ashoka Chakra page covers the Air Force's highest peacetime gallantry winner.
Frequently asked questions
When was the Indian Air Force established?
The Indian Air Force was established on 8 October 1932. Its first operational flight took off on 1 April 1933 from Drigh Road, Karachi, with four Westland Wapiti aircraft, six RAF-trained officers and 19 Havai Sepoys. The date of raising is why Air Force Day is observed on 8 October.
Why is Air Force Day celebrated on 8 October?
Air Force Day marks the raising of the Indian Air Force on 8 October 1932. The Ministry of Defence records that the service was established on that day. The first operational flight followed on 1 April 1933.
How many commands does the Indian Air Force have?
The Indian Air Force has seven commands. Five are operational: Western, Eastern, Central, South Western and Southern. Two are functional: Training Command at Bengaluru and Maintenance Command at Nagpur. Each is headed by an Air Marshal called the AOC-in-C.
Who is the Chief of the Air Staff of India?
ACM Ashutosh Dixit has been the Chief of the Air Staff since 31 October 2026. The Chief heads the Indian Air Force from Air Headquarters, Vayu Bhawan, in New Delhi and sits on the Chiefs of Staff Committee. The President is the Supreme Commander of the armed forces.
When did the Royal Indian Air Force become the Indian Air Force?
The Air Force received the prefix "Royal" in March 1945 for its service in the Second World War. It dropped the prefix in January 1950, when India became a republic, and has been the Indian Air Force since. The change covers its name only; the service was raised in 1932.
More in Defence GK
Sources: static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2024/oct/doc2024107411201.pdf · pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1965562 · pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2124389 · pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2330846
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