IAF Vice-Chief retires on Friday, no successor named

Vice-Chief Air Marshall S K Malik formally retires on Friday, the last working day of the month. Protocol demands that the Cabinet Committee on Appointments (CCA) name a successor at least 15 days before the Vice-Chief steps down so that the new appointee can be briefed in detail about what is possibly the IAF’s most complicated and sensitive post.

The three contenders for Malik’s post are Air Marshal S K Jain, who currently commands the IAF’s South Western Air Command, the Commander of the Training Command Air Marshal Subhash Bhojwani and Strategic Forces commander Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani.

But even their Command successors are yet to be announced, leading to what an Air HQ officer called “an unprecedented and serious situation”.

The officer said: “A clear indication that there has been no movement on the appointment is that no successors have been announced for any of these commands either. ”

IAF chief Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi has expressed concern over the delay in naming Malik’s successor.

The Vice-Chief is arguably the busiest officer among the IAF’s top leadership, directly heading nine of the force’s most sensitive departments.

“It may appear that becoming a Vice-Chief just entails occupying a new office, but it is a highly specialised and technical post with the most complex network of protocols. It takes time to get into the mode of being the force’s no. 2 officer. Even if the new Vice-Chief is announced over the next three days it is already very late,” the Air HQ officer said.