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Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor, who commanded the Indian Air Force’s South Western Air Command (SWAC) during Operation Sindoor, has assumed charge as the Vice Chief of Air Staff. He succeeds Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari, who superannuated on Wednesday after over four decades of distinguished service.
Before this appointment, Air Marshal Kapoor was the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of SWAC, headquartered in Gandhinagar. He was awarded the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal for his leadership during Operation Sindoor, under which the IAF carried out coordinated strikes on Pakistani air bases between May 6 and 10, inflicting significant damage on military targets.
Air Marshal Kapoor now assumes the second-highest post in the Indian Air Force at a critical juncture in India’s evolving air power strategy.
The Air Marshal is a graduate of the National Defence Academy, having passed out in December 1985, and was commissioned into the Air Force on December 6, 1986, in the fighter stream of the flying branch.
Air Marshal Kapoor is an accomplished fighter pilot, a qualified flying instructor, and a fighter combat leader. He has flown all variants of the MiG-21 and MiG-29 aircraft. Throughout his distinguished flying career, he has accumulated over 3,400 hours of operational and instructional flying experience on a wide range of combat and trainer aircraft.
An alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College and the National Defence College, Air Marshal Kapoor has held a wide spectrum of command, operational, instructional and staff appointments.
His operational experience includes serving as the Commanding Officer of a fighter squadron in the Central Sector, Station Commander of a frontline flying base in the Western Sector, and Air Officer Commanding of a premier air base. His instructional roles have included Chief Instructor (Flying) at the Air Force Academy and as a member of the Directing Staff at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington.
During his time at the Air Force Academy, he played a crucial role in the induction and operationalisation of the PC-7 Mk II aircraft within the Air Force.
The Air Marshal has also held a diplomatic position as Defence Attaché to Pakistan. His significant staff appointments include Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Operations and Strategy) at Air Headquarters, Air Defence Commander at South Western Air Command, Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters Central Air Command, and Air Officer-in-Charge of Personnel at Air Headquarters.
New Head of Training Command
Air Marshal Seethepalli Shrinivas took over as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C), Training Command, Indian Air Force on Thursday. Prior to his current assignment, he served as the Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters South Western Air Command.
Air Marshal Shrinivas, an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, was commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force in 1987. He is a ‘Category A’ Qualified Flying Instructor with over 4,200 hours of flying experience on various aircraft, including the MiG-21, Iskra, Kiran, PC-7 Mk II, HPT-32, and Microlite. In addition, Air Marshal Shrinivas is qualified as a second pilot on the Chetak and Cheetah helicopters and has attained categorisation as an Operations Officer on the Pechora missile system.
Throughout his career, he has held several important command and staff positions. These roles include Commandant of the Air Force Academy, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) of a frontline fighter base on the Western border, AOC of a premier flying training base, AOC of the Advance Headquarters Western Air Command in Jaipur, Commanding Officer of the esteemed Flying Instructors School, Commandant of the Institute of Aerospace Safety, and Commanding Officer of the Basic Flying Training School.
Team BharatShakti
