Chief of the Air Staff (Pakistan)

The Chief of the Air Staff (reporting name: CAS) is a senior Pakistani military appointment and a statutory office held by an Air Chief Marshal in the Pakistan Air Force, who is appointed by the prime minister of Pakistan with final confirmation by the president of Pakistan. The CAS is the highest-ranking officer of the air force.

Until 2025, the Chief of the Air Staff was also a senior member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee in a separate capacity and usually provided necessary consultation to the erstwhile Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee to act as a principal military adviser to the prime minister and its civilian government in the line of defending and guarding the nation's airspace and aerial borders.

The Chief of the Air Staff exercises his responsibility of command and control of the operational, administration, combatant, logistics, and training commands within the Air Force.

Since 1985, the appointment, in principle, was constitutionally subjected for three years. However, in March 2024, the incumbent chief was controversially given a one year extension in his tenure. In November 2024, the term length was increased to five years. The Chief of the Air Staff is based at the Air Headquarters, and the current chief is Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmad Babar.