How to Join Indian Air force as an Officer?

By Saurabh Sir Last updated Dec 19, 2022

In Order to join the Indian Air force, There are many ways to join the service as an officer, Here In this article I will share with you the Ways to join IAF as an Officers, How to Join Indian Airforce as an officer, join the airforce after graduation, how to join the Indian airforce after 12th, etc. I will share with you all the details of joining the Indian air force after 10+2 and after graduation. To get all the details of Joining read the complete article below:

Ways of Joining the Indian Air force

Table of Contents

There are many ways of Joining the service as an Officer or as Airmen but here I will tell you only about the Officer’s Entry into the Indian Air force. You can join the service after the 12th or after graduation. Let’s see ways to join the Indian Air force after the 12th:

How to Join the Indian Airforce after 12th

In order to join the Indian Airforce force after the 12th, you must have physics and mathematics at 10+2 level. You can join the Indian Airforce through the NDA (National Defence Academy) exam, This exam is conducted by the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) You can apply for this after the 12th.

NDA Eligibility Criteria:

Candidate must have physics and mathematics in 10+2.
If you are in class 12^th. Then too you can apply.
Candidate must have 60% marks in PCM in the 12th board.

Age Limit for NDA:

The age of candidates must be between 16.5 to 19 yrs old.
There is no relaxation has been given to any caste or religion.
The age limit is the same for all the categories.

How to Qualify NDA on First Attempt? Crack NDA Written Exam after 12th.

This is the Only entry after the 12th by which You can become an officer in the defence. There is one more way also which is NCC (National cadets Cops) Special Entry Scheme. The eligibility criteria are the same as it is for the NDA but the Candidate must have NCC “C” certificate with a minimum B grade.

Ways to Join Indian Air Force after Graduation

There is a Total of Three ways of joining the Indian Air force as an officer after graduation:

CDS (Combined Defense Service)
AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test)
NCC (National Cadet Core) Special Entry Scheme

CDS (Combined Defense Service) Examination:

This Exam is conducted by the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) twice a year. You can apply for this after graduation, You must complete your graduation with a minimum of 55% marks from any recognized Institute or University.

Eligibility criteria of CDS:

The candidate should have passed 10+2 with physics and mathematics and have a degree in any discipline from any recognized Institute.

Age limit: For AFA (Air Force Academy), A Candidate’s age must be between 19-24yrs old.

AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test):-

This Exam is conducted by the Indian Air force Itself for the selection of officers into their following branches Flying Branch, Technical Branch Ground Branch, etc. You can apply for this exam after graduation.

AFCAT Eligibility Criteria:

Only Indian citizens are eligible to apply.
Candidate must have a graduation degree in any discipline with 60% marks.
Candidates appearing in the final semester or year can also apply.
Candidate should have physics and mathematics in class 12^th.
Candidates below the age of 25 must be unmarried before the commencement of the course.

NCC Special Entry Scheme:

This is a special entry scheme, If you have done NCC “Air Wings” and your ‘C’ Certificate with a minimum B grade, you are eligible to apply for this.

If you have done the NCC in other wings like Army wings or Navy Wings then too, You are eligible to apply for the same, and you will get all the relaxation that an air wings cadet gets.

Eligibility

In order to join the Indian Air force, you must have physics and mathematics at 10+2 level with a minimum of 60% marks.

Age Limit

If you are applying for the NCC special entry after the 12th, Your age must be between 16.5 to 19.5 yrs old.
If you are applying for the NCC special entry after graduation, your age must be between 20 to 24 yrs old.

Most of the students who want to join the Indian Air force, they want to be fighter pilots I guess. In order to become Fighter Pilot in the Indian Air force, You will have to apply for the flying branch. Once you get into the academy then you can apply for this and after you will have done medically for the Fighter pilot. The medical of the fighter pilot is one of the toughest medical in the world.

In the medical of a Fighter pilot, every vein of your brain will be tested and then you will go for the fighter training but If you have a healthy body and have never been in any serious accidents or any diseases. Then that would be okay. All the ways of joining the Indian Air force, I have mentioned above.