The Government of Pakistan has designated Vice Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Tanvir Mehmood Ahmed as next Chief of the Air Staff. He will assume command of Pakistan Air Force on March 20 on the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Kaleem Saadat, the present Chief of the Air Staff.
Air Marshal Tanvir Mahmood Ahmed was born in 1952 and got his initial education in Lahore. Subsequently, after doing his F.Sc from PAF Public School, Sargodha, he joined the PAF. He graduated from the PAF Academy, Risalpur in April, 1972, and went on to do Fighter and Operational Conversion courses. He First flew on the American F-86 (Sabre) and then flew all types of Chinese and French fighter aircraft on PAF inventory.
He is a Qualified Flying Instructor (QFI) and Combat Commander on Fighter aircraft. He commanded an elite Fighter Squadron, the choicest F-16s Flg Wing, PAF Base, Sargodha and the PAF Academy, Risalpur.
In staff jobs, the Air Marshal has served as Deputy Director in Operations Branch, Personal Staff Officer to two Air Chiefs, Chief Project Director of F-16 Project, Senior Air Staff Officer at Northern Air Command, Peshawar, and Director General of Air Weapons Complex, Wah.
At senior staff assignments, the Air Marshal has the unique distinction of having served as Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Admin) and then Operations. Currently, he has been serving as the Vice Chief of the Air Staff for over two years.
Air Marshal Mahmood has also served in UAE Air Force as a fighter instructor pilot. He is a graduate of Turkish Air War College, Turkey, and National Defence College, Islamabad from where he did his MSc in Strategic Studies. The Air Officer is married and is blessed with four children, two of whom are pilots in the PAF.
In recognition of his meritorious and exceptionally dedicated services, he has been decorated with Sitara-e-Basalat, Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Mil) and Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Mil).