(Plans). After a three-year stint as ACAS Plans, he was promoted to the rank of Air Marshal and was appointed Deputy Chief of Air Staff (DCAS). On 26 January 1996, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal. Krishnaswamy was promoted to Commander-in-Chief grade on 1 April 1997 and appointed Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command at Allahabad. After a short stint, he was appointed AOC-in-C South Western Air Command (SWAC) at Jodhpur in November. On 26 January 1998, he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service of the highest order. Under Krishnaswamy, in view of the increased operational importance of SWAC, it was decided by Air HQ that the headquarters of SWAC would move from Jodhpur to Gandhinagar. He oversaw this move and the new HQ SWAC was inaugurated on 1 May 1998 by the then Chief Minister of Gujarat Keshubhai Patel. He served in this appointment during the Kargil War. He was awarded the Agni Award for Self Reliance in August 1999 for promoting indigenous development in the Indian Armed services. On 1 November 1999, he was appointed AOC-in-C of the premier Western Air Command (WAC). He took command from Air Marshal Vinod Patney at HQ WAC. He thus has the rare distinction of having commanded three operational commands of the IAF. On 1 August 2001, Krishnaswamy moved to Air HQ after being appointed Vice Chief of the Air Staff. On 30 October 2001, the Government of India announced that Krishnaswamy was appointed the next Chief of the Air Staff. Krishnaswamy took over as the 19th Chief of the Air Staff on 31 December 2001 from Air Chief Marshal Anil Yashwant Tipnis. He served as full tenure of three years and relinquished command on 31 December 2004, handing over to Air Chief Marshal Shashindra Pal Tyagi. Awards and decorations Dates of rank References Living people Indian Air Force officers Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal Chiefs of Air Staff (India) Vice Chiefs of Air Staff (India) Military personnel from Chennai 1943 births National Defence College, India alumni Recipients of the Vayu Sena Medal Recipients of the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal