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New Delhi, Jan. 22: Air headquarters today designated Air Marshal Padamjit Singh Ahluwalia as the air officer commanding-in-chief of the western air command, fuelling speculation within the defence establishment on whether the move takes him a step closer to being named the next air chief marshal.
The western air command, headquartered in Delhi, is the centre of the air force’s most intensive operations. Its area of responsibility covers Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir up to the borders with Pakistan and China.
Air Marshal Ahluwalia (in picture) is among four officers named in a shortlist forwarded by air headquarters from which the government will have to select the next air chief marshal. The current head of the IAF, Air Chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi, is due to retire in March.
The other air marshals on the list are vice-chief B.N. Gokhale, P.K. Mehra, who currently heads the South Western Air Command, and Fali Homi Major, who is chief of the Eastern Air Command.
Major is the seniormost among the contenders. But murmurs within the officer cadre of the IAF point to his background as a helicopter pilot.
By convention and practice, every chief of the IAF — barring I.H. Latif — has been a fighter aircraft pilot. But Air Marshal Major is from the stream of helicopter gunship pilots and has also commanded important fighter aircraft bases and, as head of the Eastern Command currently, continues to lead a strategic area of responsibility. The other three air marshals are all from the stream of fighter aircraft pilots.
There has been no indication from the defence ministry on whether it will be guided by past practice in the matter of appointing the next chief of air staff or will go by the book and appoint the seniormost officer to the position.
The call has to be taken by the cabinet committee on appointments.
Air Marshal Ahluwalia will take over as chief of the western air command from Air Marshal A.K. Singh, who is due to retire on January 31.
He has about 4,000 hours of flying experience on all types of fighter aircraft in the IAF’s inventory.
He has served as air adviser to the chief of air staff and was director general (inspection and flight safety).