Ajay Kochhar

Vice Admiral

Ajay Kochhar

AVSM, NM
Allegiance India
Service / branch Indian Navy
Years of service1988 - present
Rank Vice Admiral
CommandsNational Defence Academy
Western Fleet
INS Vikramaditya (R33)
INS Trikand (F51)
Awards Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Nao Sena Medal

Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar, AVSM, NM is a serving Flag officer in the Indian Navy. He currently serves as the Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command. He last served as the as the Commandant of the National Defence Academy. He earlier served as the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet and prior to that was the third commanding officer of the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

Kochhar was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 1 July 1988. He is a specialist in Gunnery and Missile Warfare. He has commanded five warships of the Indian Navy.[1] On 29 June 2013, as the commissioning commanding officer of the Talwar-class stealth guided missile frigate INS Trikand (F51), he commissioned the ship in Kaliningrad, Russia.[2]

On 20 July 2017, Kochhar took command of the flagship of the Indian Navy, the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (R33) as its third commanding officer.[3]

Flag rank

On promotion to Flag Rank, Kochhar took over as the Assistant Controller Carrier Project (ACCP) at Naval headquarters. He then served as the Assistant Controller Warship Production & Acquisition (ACWP&A).[4] As the ACCP, he managed the construction of the indigenous aircraft carrier. In his role as ACWP&A, he oversaw all aspects related to construction and acquisition of warships for the Navy both from Indian as well as foreign shipyards.[5]

Kochhar took command of the Western Fleet on 24 February 2021 as the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet from Rear Admiral Krishna Swaminathan.[5] For his command of the Western fleet, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal on 26 January 2022.[6]

On 1 April 2022, Kochhar took over as the Commandant of the National Defence Academy from Air Marshal Sanjeev Kapoor.[7] After a two-year stint, he was appointed Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command.[8]

Awards and decorations

Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Nao Sena Medal Samanya Seva Medal Operation Vijay Star
Operation Vijay Medal Operation Parakram Medal Sainya Seva Medal 50th Anniversary of Independence Medal
30 Years Long Service Medal 20 Years Long Service Medal 9 Years Long Service Medal

See also

References

  1. ^ "REAR ADMIRAL AJAY KOCHHAR ASSUMES COMMAND OF THE WESTERN FLEET (FOCWF)". pib.gov.in.
  2. ^ "INS Trikand, a Stealth Frigate joins Indian Navy | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in.
  3. ^ Twitter https://twitter.com/indiannavy/status/854873877222014978. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ^ "Image Gallery". www.grse.in.
  5. ^ a b "Rear Admiral Ajay Kochhar Assumes Command of The Western Fleet (FOCWF) | Indian Navy". indiannavy.nic.in.
  6. ^ "PRESS RELEASE - DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS TO INDIAN NAVY PERSONNEL ON REPUBLIC DAY". www.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  7. ^ "CHANGE AT THE HELM : VICE ADMIRAL AJAY KOCHHAR, AVSM, NM ASSUMES THE APPOINTMENT OF COMMANDANT NATIONAL DEFENCE ACDAEMY". pib.gov.in. 1 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  8. ^ "x.com". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 27 May 2024.
Military offices
Preceded by Commanding Officer INS Vikramaditya
2017 - 2018 		Succeeded by
Puruvir Das
Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet
2021 - 2021 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Commandant, National Defence Academy
2022 - Present 		Succeeded by