Awadhesh Kumar Bharti
Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti, SYSM, AVSM,VM is a serving air officer of the Indian Air Force. He is the currently serving as the Deputy Chief of the [Air Staff (India)|Deputy Chief of the Air Staff]. He was previously serving as the Director General of Air Operations, prior to that he was Senior Air Staff Officer, Central [Air Command (India)|Central Air Command].
Early life and education
He was born in Purnia district of Bihar. His father is Jiwachh Lal Yadav, a retired govt personnel of Kosi Project and his mother is Urmila Devi. He is an alumnus of Sainik School, Tilaiya. He then attended the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and the Air Force Academy, Dundigal. He was awarded the President’s Silver Medal at the National Defence Academy and was awarded the Sword of Honour for standing first in overall merit in his course at the Air Force Academy. He is also an alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and the National Defence College, New Delhi. During his NDA days, Air Marshal Bharti was nicknamed ‘Galloping Horse’, as his cross country record there remained unbroken for many years.Military career
The Air Marshal was commissioned as a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force on 13 June 1987 from the Air Force Academy. In a career spanning over three decades, he has more than 4000 hours of flying experience across various fighter jets and has held numerous field & staff appointments. He is a highly experienced combat fighter pilot and has flown different types of aircraft like MIG-21, MIG-29, SU-30MKI, SU-30MKM. He has led and also been a part of many IAF air exercises viz COPE India 2004, Exercise Garuda, Exercise Indradanush on foreign soils. He has been the Flight Commander of Sukhoi 30 fighter squadron No. 24 Squadron and Commanding Officer of Sukhoi 30 Mk I No. 30 Squadron. He was awarded with three stars for accident-free flying. The Air Marshal's operational tenures include being the Air Officer Commanding Officer of a frontline fighter Air base at Pune in the Southern Western Air Command. His staff appointments include Air Attaché with Royal Malaysian Air Force where he trained the Malaysian Fighter Pilots on SU-30 MKM.As an Air Vice Marshal, he served as the Chief Staff Officer in Strategic Forces Command and later as Assistant Chief of Staff, Offensive Operations at Air Force Headquarters.
After being promoted to the rank of Air Marshal, he was appointed as the Senior Air Staff Officer, Central Air Command. A year later, on 3 October 2024, he assumed the appointment of Director General Air Operations.As the Director General of Air Operations,he played a vital role in India's Operation Sindoor. On 1 June 2025, Air Marshal Bharti took over as the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff.