Air Marshal Samir Jayasinha Pendse on Monday assumed charge as the Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) of the Indian Air Force’s Training Command. An NDA alumnus, he was commissioned into the IAF’s Flying (Pilot) branch on December 16, 1989, and has logged over 5,100 hours of accident-free helicopter flying during his 36-year career.  Air Marshal Pendse has commanded an Advance Headquarters, two IAF bases, and a frontline helicopter unit, besides serving on a United Nations mission in Sudan. A National Defence College, Dhaka graduate, he also served as Inspector General (Air), BSF, managing the aviation wing of the MHA. 

He is a decorated officer, having received the Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry) in 1997 and the Vishisht Seva Medal in 2015 from the President of India.