Krishna Swaminathan
27th Chief of the Naval Staff (India)
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Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM is a serving four-star flag officer in the Indian Navy. He is the current and the 27th Chief of the Naval Staff. He previously served as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command and as the 46th Vice Chief of Naval Staff. His flag appointments include Chief of Personnel, Controller of Personnel Services and Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command. He was the second Commanding Officer of the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
Krishna Swaminathan | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2026 | |
| 27th Chief of the Naval Staff | |
| Assumed office 31 May 2026 | |
| President | |
| Preceded by | Dinesh Kumar Tripathi |
| Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command | |
| In office 1 August 2025 – 30 May 2026 | |
| Dinesh Kumar Tripathi | |
| Preceded by | Sanjay Jasjit Singh |
| Succeeded by | Sanjay Vatsayan |
| 46th Vice Chief of the Naval Staff | |
| In office 1 May 2024 – 31 July 2025 | |
| President | |
| Dinesh Kumar Tripathi | |
| Preceded by | Dinesh Kumar Tripathi |
| Succeeded by | Sanjay Vatsayan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | |
| Spouse | Laila Swaminathan[1] |
| Sainik School, Bijapur, National Defence Academy, Indian Naval Academy | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  India |
| Branch/service |  Indian Navy |
Years of service | July 1987 - present |
| Rank |   Admiral |
| Commands | |
| Service Number | 03221-W [2] |
| Awards |  Param Vishisht Seva Medal  Ati Vishisht Seva Medal  Vishisht Seva Medal |
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Early life and education
Krishna was born to D. Swaminathan and Shanta Swaminathan, both teachers, in Bangalore. The Swaminathans resided in NR Colony in Basavanagudi. He attended the Bishop Cotton Boys' School until the age of 11. He then attended the Sainik School, Bijapur. He subsequently joined and graduated from the National Defence Academy, Pune.[3]
Naval career
Krishna was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 1 July 1987. He spent his early years in Mumbai, receiving his watchkeeping ticket on the Pondicherry-class minesweeper INS Alleppey (M65). He specialised in Communication and Electronic Warfare. In the early 1990s, he served as the Aide-de-camp to the Governor of Uttar Pradesh. In 2000, he was selected to attend the Advanced Command and Staff Course at the Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC), Shrivenham in the United Kingdom.[4]
Krishna commanded the Veer-class corvettes, INS Vidyut (K48) and INS Vinash (K47). Promoted to the rank of Commander in 2003, he subsequently served on the staff of the Western Fleet, as the Fleet Electronic Warfare Officer (FEWO). He then commanded the Kora-class corvette INS Kulish (P63). Krishna later moved to the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington as a Directing Staff before attending the higher command course at the College of Naval Warfare in Mumbai.[5]
Krishna was promoted to the rank of Captain in 2009 and was selected to attend the Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island in the United States. On his return, he was appointed Naval Assistant (NA) to the Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Nirmal Kumar Verma. After his stint as NA, he took command of the guided missile destroyer INS Mysore (D60). He was in command of Mysore during the President's fleet review in 2011. Under his command, the ship participated in INDRA - the joint naval exercise with Russia, in late 2012.[6]
As a Commodore, Krishna served as the Principal Director Naval Signals at NHQ and had a second stint as NA to CNS, this time to Admiral Robin K. Dhowan. On 2 November 2015, Krishna took command of the flagship of the Indian Navy, the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (R33) as its second commanding officer.[4][7] He commanded the carrier during the International Fleet Review 2016. During his command tenure, Vikramaditya was adjudged the Best Ship of the Western Fleet.[8]
Flag rank
On promotion to Flag rank, Krishna took over as the Chief Staff Officer (Training) (CSO (Trg)) at the Southern Naval Command, the training command of the Indian Navy, at Kochi. As CSO (Trg), he played a key role in the conduct of all training in the Navy. He was also instrumental in raising the Indian Navy Safety Team (INST) that oversees operational safety across all verticals of the Navy.[9] On 18 March 2019, he assumed the office of Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST), also at Kochi.[5]
He then took over the Western Fleet on 14 February 2020 as the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet.[10] In February 2021, he relinquished command of the Western Fleet and was appointed Flag Officer Defence Advisory Group and took over from Rear Admiral Ravindra Jayant Nadkarni.[11] He was the FODAG during the extremely severe Cyclone Tauktae, which impacted off-shore oil operations.[12]
On 4 November 2021, he was promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral and assumed the appointment of Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command. [13] In April 2023, he was appointed Controller of Personnel Services at Naval headquarters, New Delhi.[14] After a short stint as CPS, on 6 October 2023 he was appointed as the Chief of Personnel.[14]
On 1 May 2024, he took over as the 46th Vice Chief of Naval Staff succeeding Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi upon his elevation as the Chief of the Naval Staff.[15] On 31 July 2025, he took over as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command succeeding Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh.[16][17]
Chief of Naval Staff
On 9 May 2026, the Government of India appointed Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan as the next Chief of the Naval Staff succeeding Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi who superannuated on 31 May.[18] On 31 May 2026, he took over as the 27th Chief of the Naval Staff.[19]
Personal life
He is married to Mrs. Laila Swaminathan. The couple have two daughters.[20]
Awards and decorations
During his career, the flag officer has been awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2026,[21] the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2021[22] and the Vishisht Seva Medal in 2017.[23]
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