Air Marshal Arup Raha AVSM VM graduated from the National Defence Academy, Pune with the President’s Gold Medal in 1973. He was commissioned in the Flying Branch in Dec 1974. He has to his credit nearly 3400 hours of flying mainly on fighter aircraft. Air Marshal Raha is an experienced Qualified Flying Instructor (QFI) holding ‘A2’ instructional category. He has served as a Directing Staff at Flying Instructors School, (FIS) Tambaram as well as at the Tactics and Combat Development Establishment (TACDE) of the IAF. He was an inspector in the Directorate of Air Staff Inspection at Air Headquarters and has been Staff Officer to the Chief of the Air Staff. He was deputed as the Military and Air Attaché in the Embassy of India, Kyiv, Ukraine from 1999 to 2001. He has held many operational assignments such as Commanding Officer of MiG-29 Squadron, Station Commander of Air Force Station Bathinda in Punjab during ‘OP PARAKRAM’, Air Officer Commanding, Air Force Station Adampur and Advance HQ Western Air Command, Chandimandir. He has also served as the Deputy Commandant Air Force Academy, Hyderabad. The Air Mshl was Senior Air Staff Officer at HQ Western Air Command and was AOC-in-C, Central Air Command prior to his present appointment as AOC-in-C Western Air Command. He is an alumnus of Defence Services Staff College and the National Defence College, Delhi. He was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal and Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 1995 and 2009 respectively for distinguished service. He is married and has two children. His hobbies are reading and traveling. He is also a keen golfer. Source : Press Information Bureau |
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