The turn of the year saw Air Marshal Tejinder Singh take over as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C) of South Western Air Command (SWAC) from Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor in Gandhinagar. Kapoor has been appointed the 50th Vice Chief of Air Staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The AOC-in-C of SWAC — a three-star rank officer — is the senior most military commander stationed in Gujarat. The Army and Navy have two-star officers, a Major General and Rear Admiral respectively, stationed in Gujarat.
Five VCAS from SWAC in a decade
Kapoor is now the second consecutive SWAC chief to be appointed Vice Chief of Air Staff (VCAS) as his immediate predecessor, Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari, served as the 49th Vice Chief, superannuating on December 30, 2025.
Following the success of Operation Sindoor, both Kapoor and Tiwari received the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal (SYSM) from President Droupadi Murmu on August 15, 2025, India’s 79th Independence Day.
Over the last decade, a total of five officers who served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C) of SWAC have gone on to become Vice Chiefs and one would attain an even higher rank.
Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, who served as SWAC chief from October 2021 to January 2023, was appointed the 46th Vice Chief of Air Staff. Earlier, Air Marshal Harjit Singh Arora, who headed SWAC from October 2019 to June 2021, was appointed the 44th Vice Chief of Air Staff.
Birender Singh Dhanoa, who served AOC-in-C at SWAC from June 2015 to December 2016, went on to be appointed the 40th Vice Chief of Air Staff, and then served as the 22nd Chief of Air Staff as the Air Chief Marshal of the IAF. He also served as the 56th Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC).
Who is Air Marshal Tejinder Singh?
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According to a statement from the Air Force, the newly appointed SWAC chief Tejinder Singh, “is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy. He was commissioned in the fighter stream of the IAF on June 13, 1987. He is a Category ‘A’ Qualified Flying Instructor with over 4,500 hours of flying, an alumnus of Defence Service Staff College and National Defence College. He has previously commanded a Fighter Squadron, a Radar Station, a premier Fighter Base and was Air Officer Commanding, Jammu and Kashmir.”
His varied staff appointments include Operational Staff at a Command HQ, Air Commodore (Personnel Officers-I) at Air Headquarters, Deputy Assistant Chief of Integrated Defence Staff, Financial (Planning) at HQ IDS, Air Commodore (Aerospace Safety), Assistant Chief of Air Staff Ops (Offensive), Assistant Chief of Air Staff Ops (Strategy) at Air Headquarters (Vayu Bhawan), Senior Air Staff Officer, Eastern Air Command and Deputy Chief of the Air Staff at Air HQ (VB).
Prior to his present appointment, he was the AOC-in-C, Training Command, IAF. He was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal in 2007 and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2022, by the President of India.
Brendan Dabhi works with The Indian Express, focusing his comprehensive reporting primarily on Gujarat. He covers the region's most critical social, legal, and administrative sectors, notably specializing at the intersection of health, social justice, and disasters.
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