Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

Chalit Pukbhasuk PC () (born 5 April 1948) is a retired Thai air force officer, a commander of the

Royal Thai Air Force The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) (; ) is the air force of the Kingdom of Thailand. Since its establishment in 1913 as one of the earliest air forces of Asia, the Royal Thai Air Force has engaged in numerous major and minor conflicts. During the ...

and the acting chairman of

Council for National Security The Council for National Security (; ; abbreviated CNS (), was the military junta that ruled Thailand between its 2006 Thai coup d'état, coup d'état against Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on 19 September 2006 until the later coup d'état on ...

, the junta that overthrew the government of former

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Thaksin Shinawatra Thaksin Shinawatra (, ; born 26 July 1949) is a Thai businessman and politician who was the 23rd prime minister of Thailand from 2001 to 2006. Since 2009 he has also been a citizen of Montenegro. Thaksin founded the mobile phone operator A ...

in the 2006 coup d'état.

Biography

Chalit graduated from the

Academy and held many key positions in the Air Force, including that of

air attaché An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

. Prior to becoming Commander of the Air Force, he was the Air Force's

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

. Chalit was reportedly reluctant to support the

2006 Thai coup d'état The 2006 Thai coup d'état took place on 19 September 2006, when the Royal Thai Army staged a coup d'état against the elected caretaker government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The coup d'état, which was Thailand's first non-constitu ...

–

Royal Thai Army The Royal Thai Army or RTA (; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces. History Origin The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's sovereignty. The army was formed in 187 ...

troops had surrounded Air Force Headquarters on the night of the coup to ensure that Chalit and the Air Force did not provide any resistance. Chalit was appointed a deputy chairman in the

under coup leader,

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Sonthi Boonyaratglin Sonthi Boonyaratglin (, , ; born 2 October 1946) is a Thai former general who was Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army and former head of the Council for Democratic Reform, the military junta that ruled the kingdom.baht The baht (; , ; currency sign, sign: ฿; ISO 4217, code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). Prior to decimalisation, the baht was divided into eight ''fueang'' (, ), each of eight ''at'' (, ). The ...

per month as an additional salary to his air force pay while he was deputy chairman. Chalit was named as acting chairman of the Council for National Security on 1 October 2007, succeeding Sonthi, who retired from military duty to enter politics.Thai coup general quits position
BBCThai coup leader quits military council
, TNA/MCOT. In addition to his duties as air force chief and acting CNS head, Chalit also serves as chairman of the board of

Thai Airways International Thai Airways International plc () is the flag carrier airline of Thailand. Formed in 1961 as a joint venture between SAS and Thai Airways Company, the airline has its corporate headquarters in Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, Chatuchak district, Bang ...

. In 2011, Chalit was appointed by

Bhumibol Adulyadej Bhumibol Adulyadej (5 December 192713 October 2016), titled Rama IX, was King of Thailand from 1946 until Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej, his death in 2016. His reign of 70 years and 126 days is the longest of any List of Thai mo ...

Privy Council of Thailand The Privy Council of Thailand () is a body of appointed advisors to the Monarchy of Thailand. The council, as the Constitution of Thailand stipulates, must be composed of no more than eighteen members. The council is led by the President of the ...

. Chalit is married to

Assistant professor Assistant professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States, Canada, Japan, and South Korea. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doct ...

Dr. Phonthip Phukphasuk, a now retired professor for Thai language from the Faculty of Arts of

Chulalongkorn University Chulalongkorn University (CU; ; , ) is a public university, public Autonomous university, autonomous research university in Bangkok, Thailand. The university was originally founded during King Chulalongkorn's reign as a school for training ro ...

. They have two daughters.

Honours

Royal Decorations

* Knight Grand Cordon of the Most Exalted

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant (; ) is an order (decoration), order of Thailand. It was established in 1861 by King Mongkut, Rama IV of the Thailand, Kingdom of Siam. Along with the Order of the Crown of Thailand, it is r ...

* Knight Grand Cordon of the Most Noble

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand (; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) for Thais, the royal family, governmental employees, and foreign dignitaries for their outstanding serv ...

* Knight Grand Commander of the Most Illustrious

Order of Chula Chom Klao The Most Illustrious Order of Chula Chom Klao (; ) was established on 16 November 1873 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) to commemorate the 90th Jubilee of the Chakri Dynasty and bears his name (จุลจอมเกล� ...

* Freemen Safeguarding Medal, 2nd Class 1st Cat *

Order of the Direkgunabhorn The Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn (; ) was established by King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) on 22 July 1991 (B.E. 2534) to be bestowed upon those who have rendered devotional services to the Kingdom of Thailand. The title ''Direkgu ...

, Gold Medal * Boy Scout Citation Medal of Vajira, First Class * Chakra Mala Medal * King Rama X Royal Cypher Medal, Third Class * 25th Buddhist Century Celebration Medal

Foreign Honours

* : ** Grand Meritorious Military Order Star, Nararya Class * : **

Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) The Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) () is a Awards and decorations of the Singapore Armed Forces, decoration awarded to members of the Singapore Armed Forces for exceptionally distinguished performance or extraordinary service, or the furtherance ...

References

, - , - , - Living people 1948 births

Chalit Pukbhasuk Air Chief Marshal Chalit Pukbhasuk PC () (born 5 April 1948) is a retired Thai air force officer, a commander of the Royal Thai Air Force and the acting chairman of Council for National Security, the junta that overthrew the government of form ...

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