Arjan Singh
Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, DFC (15 April 1919 – 16 September 2017) was a senior air officer of the Indian Air Force. He served as the 3rd Chief of the Air Staff from 1964 to 1969, leading the Air Force through the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. He was the first and only officer of the Indian Air Force (IAF) to be promoted to five-star rank as Marshal of the Indian Air Force, equal to the army rank of Field Marshal.
Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh | |
|---|---|
MIAF Arjan Singh in his Marshal of the Indian Air Force uniform | |
| 13th Lieutenant Governor of Delhi | |
| In office Dec 1989 – Dec 1990 | |
| Appointed by | President of India (then, R. Venkataraman) |
| Preceded by | Romesh Bhandari |
| Succeeded by | Markandey Singh |
| 11th High Commissioner of India to Kenya | |
| In office 1974–1977 | |
| President | V. V. Giri Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed B. D. Jatti Neelam Sanjiva Reddy |
| Prime Minister | Indira Gandhi Morarji Desai |
| Preceded by | K. C. Nair |
| Succeeded by | A. N. D. Haksar |
| 9th Ambassador of India to Switzerland, the Holy See and Liechtenstein | |
| In office 27 March 1971 – 26 March 1974 | |
| President | V. V. Giri |
| Prime Minister | Indira Gandhi |
| Preceded by | M. A. Hussain |
| Succeeded by | Avtar Singh |
| 12th Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee | |
| In office 7 June 1966 – 15 July 1969 | |
| President | Sir S. Radhakrishnan Zakir Husain V. V. Giri |
| Prime Minister | Gulzarilal Nanda (acting) Indira Gandhi |
| Preceded by | Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri |
| Succeeded by | Adhar Kumar Chatterji |
| 3rd Chief of the Air Staff (India) | |
| In office 1 August 1964 – 15 July 1969 | |
| President | Sir S. Radhakrishnan Zakir Husain V. V. Giri |
| Prime Minister | Lal Bahadur Shastri Gulzarilal Nanda (acting) Indira Gandhi |
| Preceded by | Aspy Merwan Engineer |
| Succeeded by | Pratap Chandra Lal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 April 1919 Lyallpur, Punjab, British India (now Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan) |
| Died | 16 September 2017 (aged 98) New Delhi, India |
| Spouse |
Teji Singh
(m. 1948; died 2011) |
| Children | 3 |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | British India (1938–1947) India (from 1947) |
| Branch/service | Royal Indian Air Force (1938–1947) Indian Air Force (1947–1969, 2002–2017) |
| Years of service | 1938–1969 2002–2017 |
| Rank | Marshal of the Indian Air Force |
| Commands | Chief of the Air Staff Operational Command Ambala Air Force Station Air Force Station Kohat Air Force Station Risalpur No. 1 Squadron IAF |
| Battles/wars | World War II Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 |
| Awards |
|
| Later work(s) | Chairman, IIT Delhi Director, Grindlays Bank National Commission for Minorities |
Singh attended the Royal Air Force College Cranwell at the age of 19 and graduated in 1939. He joined the No. 1 Squadron IAF and served in the North-West Frontier Province. In World War II, he commanded this squadron during the Arakan Campaign and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. In 1945, he attended the RAF Staff College, Bracknell. After the Partition of India in 1947, he led the first fly-past of Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF) aircraft over the Red Fort in Delhi. He then commanded Air Force Station, Ambala at the rank of Group Captain. In 1950, after completing the staff course at Joint Service Defence College, Latimer, Buckinghamshire, he was promoted to the rank of Air Commodore and took over the Operational Command. He commanded the Operational Command in two stints. In 1958, the post was upgraded to Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at the rank of Air Vice Marshal.
After attending the Imperial Defence College in 1960, he served as the Air Officer in charge of Administration at Air Headquarters. In 1963, he took over as the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff and then as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff. Singh assumed office as the Chief of the Air Staff, on 1 August 1964. For his distinguished service in commanding the IAF during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan and in 1966 became the first IAF officer to be promoted to Air Chief Marshal.
After retiring from the IAF, Singh served as a diplomat, politician and advisor to the Government of India. He served as India's Ambassador to Switzerland, the Holy See and Liechtenstein from 1971 to 1974 and as the High Commissioner of India to Kenya from 1974 to 1977. He then served as the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi from 1989 to 1990. In January 2002, the rank of Marshal of the Indian Air Force was conferred on Singh, the first and only officer of the IAF to receive the honour.