Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit on Sunday commenced his tenure as the new Air Chief paying solemn tribute at the National War Memorial to honor India's fallen heroes, the Defence Ministry  said. 

Following the homage, he was accorded a ceremonial Guard of Honour at the Air Force Station New Delhi, marking the formal start of his command.

Air Chief Marshal Dixit has accumulated more than 3,500 hours of flying experience as an accomplished Experimental Test Pilot and Qualified Flying Instructor.

He held vital strategic appointments across the military establishment including Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), HQ IDS, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Central Air Command, and Vice Chief of the Air Staff.

In his inaugural address, the newly appointed Air Chief outlined a comprehensive strategic blueprint named 'VAYU'. This framework addresses the modernisation objectives of the IAF while aligning with India's broader national defence architecture.

V - Vigilance, Victory and Readiness: Maintaining the highest state of operational preparedness across all formations, while restoring combat strength to sanctioned levels.

A - Aatmanirbharta: Accelerating indigenous capabilities across platforms, sensors weapons and technologies, with a focus on operational self-reliance and sustained combat capability.           

Y - Yukti: Harnessing ingenuity and innovation in doctrine, technology and operational procedures, including Al-enabled command and control, counter- drone capabilities, resilience and emerging operational domains.

U - Unity of Effort: Strengthening jointness with the Army, Navy and national agencies, in consonance with the national vision of JAI - Jointness, Aatmanirbharta and Innovation.

Through the 'VAYU' framework, the Chief of the Air Staff has provided a clear trajectory to transform the IAF into a highly integrated, technologically advanced aerospace force capable of safeguarding national interests and deterring potential conflicts through credible air power, it said.