Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan assumes charge as Vice Chief of the Naval Staff

Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan on Wednesday assumed charge as new Vice Chief of the Indian Navy.

On the occasion, he laid a wreath at the National War Memorial and also received the Guard of Honour at the South Block in Delhi.

Commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1987, the officer is a specialist in communication and electronic warfare.

He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla; the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, United Kingdom; the College of Naval Warfare, Karanja; and the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, USA.

A recipient of the AVSM and the VSM, the Admiral has held several key operational, staff and training appointments in his naval career, including the command of the missile vessels INS Vidyut and INS Vinash; the missile corvette INS Kulish; the guided missile destroyer INS Mysore; and the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

On promotion to the rank of Rear Admiral, he served as the Chief Staff Officer (Training) at Headquarters, Southern Naval Command, Kochi and played a key role in the conduct of training across the Indian Navy. He was also instrumental in raising the Indian Naval Safety Team, which oversees operational safety across all verticals of the Navy. He then went on to head the Work-Up Organisation of the Navy as the Flag Officer Sea Training, after which he was privileged to be appointed as the Flag Officer Commanding, Western Fleet. After commanding the sword arm, he was appointed as the Flag Officer of the Offshore Defence Advisory Group and Advisor, Offshore Security and Defence, to the Government of India.

On promotion to the rank of Vice Admiral, the Flag Officer was Chief of Staff of the Western Naval Command and Controller of Personnel Services at NHQ. Prior to his current assignment as Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, he served as Chief of Personnel at NHQ.

VAdm Swaminathan’s educational qualifications include a BSc degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; MSc in Telecommunications from Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi; MA in Defence Studies from King’s College, London; MPhil in Strategic Studies from Mumbai University; and a PhD in International Studies from Mumbai University.