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Indian Air Force Presidential Award Winners 2025
Indian Air Force Presidential Award Winners 2025 : As India celebrates its 79th Independence Day in 2025, the Indian Air Force (IAF) proudly recognises its heroes through the prestigious Presidential Awards. These honours celebrate exceptional acts of courage, selfless service, and outstanding dedication to the nation. The announcement reflects the IAF’s enduring legacy of valour, commitment, and professionalism.
Indian Air Force Presidential Award Winners 2025
1. Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal
Awarded for the highest degree of distinguished service during wartime, the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal (SYSM) honours exceptional military leadership and operational excellence. This year’s recipients are:
- Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari, PVSM, AVSM, VM
- Air Marshal Manavendra Singh, PVSM, AVSM, VM
- Air Marshal Anil Khosla, PVSM, AVSM, VM
- Air Marshal Balakrishnan Bhaskar, VSM, VM
2. Uttam Yudh Seva Medal
Recognising outstanding wartime service of the highest order, this year’s Uttam Yudh Seva Medal (UYSM) awardees include:
- Air Marshal Manish Khanna, AVSM, VM
- Air Marshal Pankaj Sharma, AVSM, VM
- Air Marshal Anant Naik, AVSM, VM
- Air Commodore Partha Nazeer
3. Vir Chakra
One of India’s highest wartime gallantry awards, the Vir Chakra honours acts of bravery in the presence of the enemy. The 2025 recipients are:
- Gp Capt Ranjit Singh Sidhu
- Gp Capt Manish Arora, SC
- Gp Capt Anil Kaushik
- Gp Capt Ankur Aggarwal
- Sqn Ldr Kunal Rana
- Sqn Ldr Abhishek Singh Thakur
4. Shaurya Chakra
Awarded for valour, courageous action, or self-sacrifice otherwise than in the face of the enemy, the Shaurya Chakra goes to:
- Wg Cdr Abhinav Singh
5. Yudh Seva Medal
Given for distinguished service during war, conflict, or hostilities, the Yudh Seva Medal winners for 2025 include:
- Air Mshl Joseph Suresh, VM
- Air Mshl Anil Sharma, AVSM
- AVM Prakash Singh, VM
- Air Cmde Sagar Singh Rawat, VM
- Air Cmde Sanjay Thakur, VM
- Air Cmde Dinesh Sharma, VM
- Air Cmde Rajesh Mehta, VM
- Air Cmde Manohar Lal, VM
- Air Cmde Vivek Sharma, VM
- Air Cmde Sunil Thakur, VM
- Wg Cdr Gopinath Sen
6. Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry)
Awarded for exceptional courage in the air, the Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry) celebrates operational excellence and bravery. Some of the notable 2025 awardees are:
- Gp Capt Himanshu Singh
- Gp Capt Varun Pathak
- Gp Capt Naman Batra
- Gp Capt Rahul Bansal
- Gp Capt Amar Singh
- Wg Cdr Priya Nair
- Wg Cdr Deepak Sharma
- Wg Cdr Rakesh Sharma
- Wg Cdr Rituraj Singh
- Wg Cdr Anupam Gupta
Indian Air Force Presidential Award Winners 2025
7. Mention-in-Despatches
A recognition for gallant or meritorious service in operational areas, this category has a long list of distinguished IAF personnel, including Gp Capt Sumit Prasad, Gp Capt Vivek Handa, Wg Cdr Karthik Iyer, Wg Cdr Sandeep Singh, Sqn Ldr Sanjay Malhotra, and many others whose dedication continues to inspire the nation.
Indian Air Force Presidential Award Winners 2025
Honouring the Spirit of the IAF
The Presidential Awards highlight the unwavering courage, dedication, and skill of the Indian Air Force. Each name on this list reflects a story of service to the nation — stories that inspire future generations to serve with pride. As India marks 79 years of freedom, the IAF’s gallantry awardees remind us that the skies remain safe because of their vigilance and sacrifice.
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