BANGALORE: Air Vice Marshal Raghunath Nambiar took over as the Commandant of Aircraft System Testing Establishment (ASTE) in Bangalore. An alumnus of NDA, he is also an Experimental Test Pilot and has a total of over 4100 flying hours to his credit. He was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal for Gallantry for combat flying and the attack on Tiger Hill during the Kargil conflict. Subsequently he was awarded a Bar to the Vayu Sena Medal for flight testing the LCA in 2003 during its initial phase.
Air Vice Marshal Nambiar has held many prestigious appointments such as Principal Director Offensive Operations, Director of Space Applications as well as Commanding Officer of the Flight Test Squadron.