Air Marshal Prabhakaran takes charge of Western Air Command

New Delhi, Mar 01 (UNI) Air Marshal Sreekumar Prabhakaran assumed command of Delhi based Western Air Command of the IAF on Tuesday. Air Marshal Sreekumar Prabhakaran has been an experienced MiG-21 pilot with nearly 5000 hours of flying experience. He was the Commandant of the Air Force Academy, Hyderabad prior to taking over the present appointment. The Air Marshal is a graduate of National Defence Academy, Pune and was commissioned into the IAF as a fighter pilot on 22 December 1983, the IAF said in a statement. He is an alumnus of Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington and National Defence College, New Delhi. He is a category ‘A’ qualified flying instructor. “In a service career spanning over 38 years, the Air Marshal has tenanted important command and staff appointments. These include command of two flying stations and IAF’s Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team. He has served as Directing Staff at DSSC, Commandant of the College of Air Warfare (CAW), Defence Attaché at the Indian Mission at Cairo, Egypt, Assistant Chief of Air Staff Intelligence, Director General (Inspection and Safety) and Senior Air Staff Officer of the Gandhinagar based South Western Air Command,” IAF said. Air Marshal Prabhakaran succeeds Air Marshal Amit Dev who superannuated on Feb 28, 2022 after more than 39 years of service.