Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admi ...

Pradeep Vasant Naik,

PVSM Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) (IAST: ) is a military award of India. It was constituted in 1960 and since then it is awarded in recognition to peace-time service of the most exceptional order and may be awarded posthumously. All ranks of the ...

, VSM served as the 22nd Chief of the Air Staff of the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct ...

. He took office on 31 May 2009 following the retirement of

Fali Homi Major Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major, PVSM, AVSM, SC, VM, ADC served as the 21st Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force, taking office on 1 April 2007, and becoming the first helicopter pilot in the service to be promoted to the office ...

and was succeeded in office by

Norman Anil Kumar Browne Air Chief Marshal Norman Anil Kumar Browne, PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC also known as "Charlie" Browne, is a former Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) of the Indian Air Force. He served in this position from 31 July 2011 to 31 Dec 2013. Browne served as ...

Career

Naik was born on 22 July 1949 at Nagpur, Maharashtra and was commissioned into the Indian Air Force on 21 June 1969 as a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, air-to-ground combat and sometimes electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and ...

. He is an alumnus of Sainik School, Satara and

National Defence Academy The National Defence Academy (NDA) is the joint defence service training institute of the Indian Armed Forces, where cadets of the three services i.e. the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force train together before they go on ...

, Khadakwasla in Maharashtra. During his 42 years of service, he has served in a variety of command staff and instructional appointments. Naik has over 3,000 hrs of flying on his log. He also took part in air actions during the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...

in the Eastern and Western sectors. Before taking over as Chief of Air Staff, he was the Vice Chief of Air Staff of the Indian Air Force. Naik has also served as the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the

Allahabad Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administra ...

-based,

Central Air Command ''Nigrahya Rasava shastrava'' , colors = , colors_label = , battles = 1962 Sino-Indian War, East Pakistan Operations 1971, Operation Meghdoot, Orissa Super-Cyclone Relief, 1999 , anniversaries = , commander1 = Air Marshal Amar Preet Sin ...

. Besides being a fellow of the National Defence College, New Delhi, Naik is a Qualified Flying Instructor and a Fighter Combat Leader. He has served as Directing staff at DSSC Wellington, India and at Tactics & Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE).

Advisor

Currently, he is a member of the

Board of Advisors An advisory board is a body that provides non-binding strategic advice to the management of a corporation, organization, or foundation. The informal nature of an advisory board gives greater flexibility in structure and management compared to t ...

of India's International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.).

Personal life

Naik and his wife Madhubala have two sons; the elder was a fighter pilot with the Indian Air Force and later transferred to the transport stream, and the younger, a Chief Officer in the Merchant Navy.

Awards

References

External links

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Naik, Pradeep Vasant 1949 births Living people Chiefs of Air Staff (India) Vice Chiefs of Air Staff (India) Marathi people Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal Sainik School alumni Indian Air Force officers National Defence College, India alumni