Chief of the Air Staff ( India ) - wikipedia Chief of the Air Staff ( India ) Chief of the Air Staff Flag of the Chief of the Air Staff Incumbent Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa since 31 December 2016 Indian Air Force Abbreviation CAS Member of Strategic Policy Group Seat Central Secretariat Appointer Appointments Committee of the Cabinet ( ACC ) The Chief of the Air Staff is usually the senior-most Indian Air Force officer of the senior most batch. The appointee for the office is approved by Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister, based on appointee 's ability and strong confidence with Prime Minister. Term length 3 years or at the age of 62, whichever is earlier. Precursor Commander - in - Chief, Indian Air Force Formation 1 April 1955 ; 63 years ago ( 1955 - 04 - 01 ) First holder Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee Deputy Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Shirish Baban Deo Salary ₹ 250,000 ( US $3,700 ) monthly Chief of the Air Staff is the professional head and the commander of the Indian Air Force. The position is abbreviated as CAS in the Indian Air Force cables and communication, and is usually held by a four - star air officer of the rank Air Chief Marshal. The current CAS is Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa who took office on 31 December 2016, following the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha. The position was held by an Air Commodore ( 1919 -- 1923 ), by an Air Vice-Marshal ( 1923 -- 1929 ) and by an Air Marshal ( 1929 -- 1965 ). In 1966, the position was upgraded to that of an Air Chief Marshal. The highest rank in the India 's IAF is Marshal of the Air Force, which is conferred by the President of India only in exceptional circumstances. It has only been given once in January 2002 to Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh. This is a five - star rank and is equivalent to a Field Marshal in the Army and Admiral of the Fleet in the Navy. Contents 1 List 1.1 Commander, Indian Group ( 1919 to 1920 ) 1.2 Air Officer Commanding RAF, India ( 1920 -- 1938 ) 1.3 Air Officer Commander - in - Chief, Air Forces in India ( 1938 -- 1947 ) 1.4 Air Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force ( 1947 -- 1948 ) 1.5 Commander - in - Chief, Royal Indian Air Force ( 1948 -- 1950 ) 1.6 Commander - in - Chief, Indian Air Force ( 1950 -- 1955 ) 1.7 Chief of the Air Staff ( 1955 -- present ) 1.8 Marshal of the Air Force 2 See also 3 Notes 4 References 5 External links List Commander, Indian Group ( 1919 to 1920 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Webb - Bowen, Tom Air Vice-Marshal Tom Webb - Bowen CB, CMG ( 1879 -- 1956 ) 20 September 1919 27 January 1920 7002129000000000000 ♠ 129 days Air Officer Commanding RAF, India ( 1920 -- 1938 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Webb - Bowen, Tom Air Vice-Marshal Tom Webb - Bowen CB, CMG ( 1879 -- 1956 ) 27 January 1920 31 December 1922 7003106900000000000 ♠ 2 years, 338 days Game, Philip Air Vice-Marshal Philip Game CB, DSO ( 1876 -- 1961 ) 31 December 1922 5 November 1923 7002309000000000000 ♠ 309 days Ellington, Edward Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Edward Leonard Ellington KCB, CMG, CBE ( 1877 -- 1967 ) 5 November 1923 27 December 1926 7003114800000000000 ♠ 3 years, 52 days Ellington, Edward Air Chief Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond KCB, KCMG, DSO ( 1878 -- 1933 ) 27 December 1926 6 February 1931 7003150200000000000 ♠ 4 years, 41 days 5 Steel, John Air Chief Marshal Sir John Miles Steel KCB, KBE, CMG ( 1877 -- 1965 ) 6 February 1931 2 March 1935 7003148500000000000 ♠ 4 years, 24 days 6 Ludlow - Hewitt, Edgar Air Chief Marshal Sir Edgar Ludlow - Hewitt KCB, CMG, DSO, MC ( 1886 -- 1973 ) 2 March 1935 29 September 1937 7002942000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 211 days 7 de la Ferté, Philip Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert de la Ferté KCB, CMG, DSO ( 1886 -- 1973 ) 29 September 1937 27 December 1938 7002454000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 89 days Air officer commander - in - Chief, Air forces in India ( 1938 -- 1947 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Ref de la Ferté, Philip Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert de la Ferté KCB, CMG, DSO ( 1886 -- 1973 ) 27 December 1938 6 October 1939 7002283000000000000 ♠ 283 days Higgins, John Air Marshal Sir John Higgins KCB, KBE, DSO, AFC ( 1875 -- 1948 ) 6 October 1939 26 September 1940 7002356000000000000 ♠ 356 days -- Playfair, Patrick Air Marshal Sir Patrick Playfair KCB, CB, CVO, MC ( 1889 -- 1974 ) 26 September 1940 6 March 1942 7002526000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 161 days -- Peirse, Richard Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Peirse KCB, DSO, AFC ( 1892 -- 1970 ) 6 March 1942 27 April 1943 7002417000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 52 days -- 5 Garrod, Guy Air Chief Marshal Sir Guy Garrod KCB, OBE, MC, DFC ( 1891 -- 1965 ) 27 April 1943 8 March 1944 7002316000000000000 ♠ 316 days -- 6 Thomas, Meredith Air Vice-Marshal Meredith Thomas CSI, CBE, DFC, AFC ( 1892 -- 1984 ) 8 March 1944 1 April 1946 7002754000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 24 days -- 7 Carr, Roderick Air Marshal Sir Roderick Carr KBE, CB, DFC, AFC ( 1891 -- 1971 ) 1 April 1946 22 November 1946 7002235000000000000 ♠ 235 days -- 8 Walmsley, Hugh Air Marshal Sir Hugh Walmsley KCIE, CBE, MC, DFC ( 1898 -- 1985 ) 22 November 1946 15 August 1947 7002252000000000000 ♠ 252 days -- ( On 15 August 1947, the unified RIAF was separated into the Royal Indian Air Force and the Royal Pakistan Air Force ) The following tables chronicle the appointees to the office of the Chief of the Air Staff or its preceding positions since the independence of India. ( * * Seconded from the Royal Air Force ) Air Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force ( 1947 -- 1948 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Elmhirst, Thomas Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE, CB, AFC ( 1895 -- 1982 ) 15 August 1947 21 June 1948 7002311000000000000 ♠ 311 days Commander - in - Chief, Royal Indian Air Force ( 1948 -- 1950 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Elmhirst, Thomas Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE, CB, AFC ( 1895 -- 1982 ) 21 June 1948 25 January 1950 7002583000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 218 days Commander - in - Chief, Indian Air Force ( 1950 -- 1955 ) No Name Took office Left office Time in office Elmhirst, Thomas Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE, CB, AFC ( 1895 -- 1982 ) 26 January 1950 23 February 1950 7001280000000000000 ♠ 28 days Ivelaw - Chapman, Ronald Air Chief Marshal Sir Ronald Ivelaw - Chapman KBE, GCB, CB, DFC, AFC ( 1899 -- 1978 ) 23 February 1950 9 December 1951 7002654000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 289 days Gibbs, Gerald Air Marshal Gerald Gibbs CIE, CBE, MC & Two Bars ( 1896 -- 1992 ) 10 December 1951 31 March 1954 7002842000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 111 days Mukerjee, Subroto Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee OBE ( 1911 -- 1960 ) 1 April 1954 31 March 1955 7002365000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 0 days Chief of the Air Staff ( 1955 -- present ) No. Name Rank Photo Appointment Date Left Office Decorations Subroto Mukerjee Air Marshal 1 April 1955 8 November 1960 OBE 5 Aspy Engineer Air Marshal 1 December 1960 31 July 1964 DFC 6 Arjan Singh Air Chief Marshal ( later Marshal of the Indian Air Force ) 1 August 1964 15 July 1969 Padma Vibhushan, DFC 7 Pratap Chandra Lal Air Chief Marshal 16 July 1969 15 January 1973 Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, DFC 8 Om Prakash Mehra Air Chief Marshal 16 January 1973 31 January 1976 PVSM, PV 9 Hrushikesh Moolgavkar Air Chief Marshal 1 February 1976 31 August 1978 PVSM, MVC, LOM 10 Idris Latif Air Chief Marshal 1 September 1978 31 August 1981 PVSM 11 Dilbagh Singh Air Chief Marshal 1 September 1981 3 September 1984 PVSM, AVSM, VM 12 Lakshman Mohan Katre Air Chief Marshal 3 September 1984 1 July 1985 PVSM, AVSM 13 Denis Anthony La Fontaine Air Chief Marshal 3 July 1985 31 July 1988 PVSM, AVSM, VSM 14 Surinder Mehra Air Chief Marshal 1 August 1988 31 July 1991 PVSM 15 Nirmal Chandra Suri Air Chief Marshal 31 July 1991 31 July 1993 PVSM, AVSM, VSM 16 Swaroop Kaul Air Chief Marshal 1 August 1993 31 December 1995 PVSM, MVC 17 Satish Kumar Sareen Air Chief Marshal 31 December 1995 31 December 1998 PVSM, AVSM, VM 18 Anil Yashwant Tipnis Air Chief Marshal 31 December 1998 31 December 2001 PVSM, AVSM, VM 19 Srinivasapuram Krishnaswamy Air Chief Marshal 31 December 2001 31 December 2004 PVSM, AVSM, VM & Bar 20 Shashindra Pal Tyagi Air Chief Marshal 31 December 2004 31 March 2007 PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC 21 Fali Homi Major Air Chief Marshal 31 March 2007 31 March 2009 PVSM, AVSM, SC, VM, ADC 22 Pradeep Vasant Naik Air Chief Marshal 31 March 2009 31 July 2011 PVSM, VSM, ADC 23 Anil Kumar Browne Air Chief Marshal 31 July 2011 31 December 2013 PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC 24 Arup Raha Air Chief Marshal 31 December 2013 31 December 2016 PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC 25 Birender Singh Dhanoa Air Chief Marshal 31 December 2016 Incumbent PVSM AVSM, YSM, VM, ADC Marshal of the Air Force Only once has this rank ever been given : Arjan Singh -- Marshal of the Air Force in January 2002 ( the highest rank ever given in the history of the Indian Air force ). It is equal to a five star General or a Field Marshal in the Army and Admiral of the Fleet in the Navy. See also Chief of the Army Staff ( India ) Chief of the Naval Staff ( India ) Notes ^ Jump up to : Seconded from the Royal Air Force References Jump up ^ `` Report of the 7th Central Pay Commission of India '' ( PDF ). Seventh Central Pay Commission, Government of India. Retrieved August 13, 2017. Jump up ^ Biswas, Shreya, ed. ( June 29, 2016 ). `` 7th Pay Commission cleared : What is the Pay Commission ? How does it affect salaries ? ''. India Today. Retrieved September 24, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Ex-Chiefs Gallery ''. Indian Air Force. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2014. Jump up ^ `` Air Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa AVSM YSM VM takes over as Vice Chief of the Air Staff ''. PIB. GOI. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` Press Information Bureau ''. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2016. Jump up ^ `` Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa takes over as the 25th Chief of the Air Staff ''. pib.nic.in. Archived from the original on 1 January 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2016. Jump up ^ Chiefs of the Indian Air Force 1931 to 1947 Archived 2 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ `` Chiefs of Air Staff ''. Bharat Rakshak. Archived from the original on 26 December 2013. Retrieved 18 January 2014. Jump up ^ Chiefs of the Indian Air Force 1947 to Present Archived 26 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Chiefs of the Indian Air Force External links `` Chief of The Air Staff ''. 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Question: who is the first air chief marshal of indian air force
Answer: Sir Ronald Ivelaw-Chapman KBE, GCB, CB, DFC, AFC