Raghunath Nambiar

{{Infobox military person

| honorific_prefix = Air Marshal

| name = Raghunath Nambiar

| honorific_suffix = PVSM, AVSM, VM**

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| image = File:Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar taking charge as the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Air Command of Indian Air Force, in New Delhi on October 01, 2018.jpg

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| allegiance = {{Country|India}}

| branch = {{Air force|India}}

| serviceyears = June 1981 - 31 October 2019

| rank = 30px Air Marshal

| servicenumber = 16378

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| commands = Western Air Command
Eastern Air Command
Deputy Chief of the Air Staff

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| awards = Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Vayu Sena Medal (Bar)

| spouse = Luxmi

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Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar, PVSM, AVSM, VM & Bar is a retired officer of the Indian Air Force. He served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C), Western Air Command from 1 March 2019 to 31 October 2019.{{cite web|url=http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=189140|title=Air Marshal R Nambiar PVSM AVSM VM & Bar Assumes the Command of Western Air Command as AOC-in-C|date=2019-03-01|accessdate=2019-03-01|publisher=Press Information Bureau, Government of India}}{{cite web|url=https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1589790|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar Retire|date=2019-10-31}}

Early life and education

Raghunath Nambiar's father, Padmanabhan Nambiar, was a Squadron Leader with the Indian Air Force.{{cite news | title=Kannur International Airport: Third generation pilot to land first flight | url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/2018/dec/09/third-generation-pilot-to-land-first-flight-1908986.html | work=New Indian Express | date=9 December 2018}}

Nambiar is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy.

Career

Nambiar was commissioned into the fighter stream in June 1981. He has clocked over 5,100 hours of flying experience among which 2,300 hours were on Mirage 2000 and has flown 42 different types of aircraft. He is an experimental test pilot, is a member of Society of Experimental Test Pilots and was a test pilot for the HAL Tejas project.

He has commanded the oldest squadron in the Indian Air Force, the No. 1 Squadron, and flew over 25 operational missions in a Mirage 2000 during the Kargil war. He was the first pilot to drop laser guided bombs for the Indian Air Force. He has held other command positions including Air Officer Commanding AFS Jamnagar; Air Defence Commander of Western Air Command and Deputy Chief of the Air Staff. He has held numerous staff appointments including Director of Space Applications at Air HQ; Chief Operations Officer of AFS Gwalior; Principle Director of Offensive Operations at Air HQ; Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) of Southern Air Command; and Commandant of Aircraft System Testing Establishment (ASTE). He was also a former pilot and the commanding officer of the flight test squadron at ASTE. He was also posted at the Indian embassy in Israel as a defense attaché.

Nambiar assumed office of Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Air Command on 1 October 2018 following Air Marshal Anil Khosla's elevation to the post of Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS).{{cite web|url=http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=183888|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar AVSM VM & BAR takes over Command as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Air Command|website=pib.nic.in}}{{cite web |title=Anil Khosla takes over as Vice Chief of Indian Air Force |url=http://www.uniindia.com/air-marshal-anil-khosla-takes-over-as-vice-chief-of-air-staff/india/news/1366899.html}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/air-marshal-raghunath-nambiar-takes-over-as-aoc-in-c-of-eac-118100100484_1.html|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar takes over as AOC-in-C of EAC|agency=Press Trust of India|date=2018-10-01|work=Business Standard India|access-date=2018-10-02}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.sentinelassam.com/news/air-marshal-raghunath-nambiar-new-chief-of-eastern-air-command/|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar New Chief of Eastern Air Command - The Sentinel|date=2018-10-02|work=The Sentinel|access-date=2018-10-02|language=en-US}}

He also served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Air Command. He assumed the office on 1 March 2019 following the retirement of Air Marshal Chandrashekharan Hari Kumar and served till his superannuation on 31 October 2019.{{cite tweet|user=IAF_MCC|number=1101470198996054017|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar, took over as the Air Officer Commanding in Chief (AOC-in-C) of Western Air Command (WAC) wef 01 Mar 19. Air Marshal C Hari Kumar handed over the command of WAC on his superannuation after 39 yrs of glorious service.|date=2019-03-01}}{{cite tweet|user=DefencePROPalam|number=1190260966618877952|title=Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar, AOC-in-C, WAC, hung his uniform after an illustrious career spanning over 38 years on 31 Oct 2019. He was given a ceremonial Guard of Honour at HQ WAC before he handed over charge.|date=2019-11-01}} Air Marshal Balakrishnan Suresh succeeded him.{{cite web|url=https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1589980|title=Air Marshal B Suresh Assumes the Command of Western Air Command as AOC-In-C|date=2019-11-01}}

Awards and decorations

During his career, Nambiar has been awarded with numerous awards and decorations including two Vayu Sena Medals, one for Gallantry during the Kargil Operations and for flight testing the HAL Tejas (2002), the Ati Vishist Seva Medal in (2015), Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2019, and commendations from the Chief of Air Staff (1991) and C-in-C of Strategic Force Command (2005).{{cite web|url=http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=117559|title=President Confers Gallantry and Distinguished Service Awards|website=pib.nic.in}}{{cite web|title=411 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced|url=https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=187777|date=2019-01-25|publisher=Press Information Bureau, Government of India}}

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|{{Ribbon devices|ribbon=Param Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|ribbon=Ati Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

|{{Ribbon devices|ribbon=Vayusena Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}

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|Param Vishisht Seva Medal

|colspan="2"|Ati Vishisht Seva Medal

|Vayu Sena Medal

Personal life

Air Marshal Nambiar is married to Luxmi Nambiar. His son, Aswin Nambiar, is a commercial pilot.{{cite news | title=Son follows dad on Kannur flight saga | url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/091218/son-follows-dad-on-kannur-flight-saga.html | work=Deccan Chronicle | date=9 December 2018}}