Air Force Agniveer Vayu 2026: Apply Online, Eligibility, Exam & Salary

Young people who have finished Class 12 and want to join the armed forces have a fresh chance. The Air Force Agniveer Vayu 2026 recruitment (Intake 02/2027) is open for both unmarried male and female candidates. The online form starts on 6 July 2026 and the last date is 26 July 2026. This is a recruitment under the Agnipath scheme, so it is a four year service, and this guide explains the eligibility, the exam, the physical and medical tests, the salary, and how to apply, all checked against the official Air Force advertisement.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 at a Glance

What is Agniveer Vayu?

Agniveer Vayu is the airman entry of the Indian Air Force under the Agnipath scheme. It is important to be clear about one thing from the start. This is a four year engagement, and the four years include your training time. It is not a permanent or pension based job, and it is not a direct entry as a pilot or as an officer. After the four years, the Air Force keeps not more than 25 percent of each batch in regular service, and the rest leave with a lump sum benefit. We explain all of this in detail below so you can decide with full information.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Important Dates

The two most important dates, the registration window and the exam, are fixed in the advertisement. Keep them in mind because there is no extension after the last date.

One thing to keep in mind about the result. Being on the Provisional Select List does not guarantee enrolment. The list is valid for six months, and your final enrolment still depends on your state wise merit, your medical fitness, and the number of seats available for your state.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Vacancies

Here is a point you should know clearly, because many websites get it wrong. The official advertisement does not give any fixed total number of vacancies. The Air Force recruits as per its requirement, and the seats are allotted state wise. This is why the cut off marks are decided separately for each state and can be very different from one state to another. If you see a figure like 2,500 posts on some website, treat it as an unofficial estimate, because it is not in the official notification.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Eligibility

Who can apply. Both unmarried male and female candidates can apply. The number of female candidates taken will depend on the service requirement.

Nationality. You must be an Indian citizen.

Marital status. Only unmarried candidates are eligible, and you have to give an undertaking that you will not marry during the full four year engagement period. Please note this carefully. The bar is for all four years, not only during training. If a candidate marries during this period, the service can dismiss the person. Female candidates must also give an undertaking that they will not become pregnant during the four years.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Age Limit

The age rule is given as a date of birth band, so go by your date of birth rather than a rough age. You are eligible if you were born between 1 July 2005 and 1 January 2010, with both dates included. There is one more rule at the end. When you are finally enrolled, your age should not be more than 22 years on the date of enrolment.

There is no age relaxation for any category. The same date of birth band applies to all candidates, including SC, ST and OBC. So do not believe any website that shows extra years for reserved categories in this recruitment.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Educational Qualification

There are two routes, depending on your subjects in Class 12. Before the routes, one strict rule that decides many borderline cases. The Air Force takes the aggregate percentage as written before the decimal point on your marksheet. This means 49.99 percent is treated as 49 percent and not as 50 percent. So you truly need a full 50 percent.

Route 1: Science subjects

You qualify under the science route if you meet any one of these.

• Passed 10+2 with Mathematics, Physics and English, with at least 50 percent in aggregate and 50 percent in English.
• Or a three year engineering diploma in a stream like Mechanical, Electrical, Electronics, Automobile, Computer Science, Instrumentation Technology or Information Technology, with 50 percent in aggregate and 50 percent in English.
• Or a two year vocational course that includes Physics and Mathematics as non vocational subjects, with 50 percent in aggregate and 50 percent in English.

Route 2: Other than science subjects

You qualify under this route if you meet any one of these.

• Passed 10+2 in any subjects, with at least 50 percent in aggregate and 50 percent in English.
• Or a two year vocational course, with 50 percent in aggregate and 50 percent in English.

One useful point. If you are eligible for the science paper, you are also allowed to sit for the other than science paper. You can choose to attempt both papers in the same exam sitting when you fill the form.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Application Fee

The examination fee is ₹550 plus 18 percent GST, which comes to about ₹649 in total. The fee is the same for everyone, and there is no concession for any category or for female candidates. It is paid online only, through net banking, debit card, credit card or UPI, and it is non refundable. The only refund possible is if you accidentally pay twice for the same single application.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Selection Process

The selection has three phases, and each phase is a knockout stage. You must clear one phase to move to the next.

• Phase 1: Online written test (called the STAR test).
• Phase 2: Physical Fitness Test, two Adaptability Tests, and document verification, held at an Airmen Selection Centre.
• Phase 3: Medical examination by an Air Force medical team.

Both Adaptability Tests in Phase 2 are knockout. Adaptability Test 1 is a written test that checks whether you can cope with Air Force service in different kinds of terrain, weather and operational conditions. Adaptability Test 2 checks your suitability for the military way of life. If you fail either one, your selection ends there. The detailed document check is done only after you clear the physical test, so carry your original marksheets and a domicile certificate, along with self attested photocopies and a few passport photos.

Phase 1: Online Test Pattern

The Phase 1 test is a computer based objective test. It is bilingual, in English and Hindi, except for the English part. The marking is the same in every paper. You get 1 mark for a correct answer, 0 for a question you leave, and there is a penalty of 0.25 mark for every wrong answer. So an unattempted question is not the same as a wrong one, and only wrong answers cost you marks.

The marks are normalised, which means they are adjusted to be fair across different exam sessions, and you must qualify in each paper separately. The Air Force does not publish a fixed pass percentage. The shortlisting is done state wise, so the cut off changes from state to state. Any specific pass mark you see on a coaching website is unofficial.

Phase 2: Physical Fitness Test

The physical test standards are different for male and female candidates. The first part is a run, and those who qualify get a short rest before the strength exercises.

After the run, there is a ten minute rest, and then the strength exercises are done with short breaks in between. Female candidates do not have to do push-ups.

Agniveer Vayu 2026 Physical and Medical Standards

The medical standards are strict for the Air Force, and they often decide who finally gets in. Check these carefully before you apply.

• Height. Minimum 152 cm for male candidates and for female candidates. There is a relaxation to 147 cm for women from the North East and the hilly areas of Uttarakhand, and 150 cm for Lakshadweep, with a proper domicile certificate.
• Chest. Male candidates need a minimum chest of 77 cm with at least 5 cm of expansion. Female candidates need a well proportioned chest with at least 5 cm of expansion.
• Vision. This is one area where Air Force rules are tighter than the Army, so do not mix them up. You need a vision of 6 by 12 in each eye, correctable to 6 by 6. The maximum allowed power is up to plus 2.0 for far sightedness and only up to minus 1.0 for near sightedness. Colour vision must be CP-2. A history of LASIK or PRK eye surgery is not accepted at all. For comparison, the Indian Army Agniveer allows much weaker eyesight, around minus 3.5 for near sightedness and plus 2.5 for far sightedness, so being fit for the Army does not mean you are fit for the Air Force.
• Hearing. You should be able to hear a forced whisper from 6 metres with each ear.
• Dental. You need healthy teeth with a minimum of 14 dental points. Candidates wearing braces are declared unfit.
• Tattoo. Permanent tattoos are not allowed, except on the inner side of the forearm or the back of the hand, and customary tribal tattoos. Offensive tattoos are not allowed anywhere.

If you are declared medically unfit, you can ask for an Appeal Medical Board by depositing ₹40 within three working days of being told. There is no review after the Appeal Medical Board decision, so you have to act quickly. Also plan to stay about 4 to 5 days at the centre for the medical, at your own cost.

Agniveer Vayu Salary and Seva Nidhi

An Agniveer gets a fixed monthly package under the Agnipath scheme, which goes up each year. Out of this package, you get 70 percent in hand, and 30 percent goes into your Agniveer Corpus Fund. The government puts in an equal matching amount into the fund.

At the end of the four years, you receive the Seva Nidhi package from the corpus fund. The official figure on the Air Force page is about ₹10.04 lakh, and this is the amount without interest. With the interest added over four years, it is often shown as around ₹11.71 lakh, but treat that higher figure as an estimate, because the interest depends on the rate at the time. The Seva Nidhi amount is exempt from income tax.

There are some more benefits. Every Agniveer gets a life insurance cover of ₹48 lakh during the engagement, along with risk and hardship allowances and 30 days of annual leave. In case of death on duty, the family gets a further one time payment of about ₹44 lakh along with the pay for the unserved period, and for a disability there is a one time payment of ₹44 lakh, ₹25 lakh or ₹15 lakh depending on how severe it is. There is no separate provident fund deduction, and importantly, there is no pension and no gratuity. After the four years, those who are not retained leave the service with their Seva Nidhi.

What Happens After Four Years?

This is the part you should think about before applying. When the four years are over, the Air Force selects not more than 25 percent of each batch for regular service, based on merit and the need of the force. If you are selected for regular service, you serve a further engagement of at least 20 years in the regular cadre. The remaining candidates are released with the Seva Nidhi amount and a certificate, and they are free to take up other jobs.

How to Apply for Agniveer Vayu 2026

The application is online only. One important point that confuses many candidates. You apply on the EdCIL recruitment website, not on the CASB exam portal. The CASB portal is used later for your login, admit card and mock test.

1. Go to the official website iafrecruitment.edcil.co.in and open the Agniveer Vayu section.
2. First sign up with your personal and contact details, then verify both your mobile number and email through OTP. You will receive a user ID and password.
3. Log in again, go to the application, and fill your personal, communication, qualification and declaration details.
4. Upload your photograph, signature, left thumb impression, and a parent signature if you are below 18 years, then do the live image capture.
5. Select your five exam city preferences, preview the form, and submit it.
6. Pay the fee of ₹550 plus GST online. The form is submitted automatically after a successful payment. Save and print the form for your record.

For the uploads, keep the photograph between 100 and 200 KB, the signature between 80 and 150 KB, and the left thumb impression between 50 and 100 KB, all in JPG or JPEG, as given in the official advertisement. You may see smaller sizes like 10 to 50 KB on the CASB cdac.in page, but the advertisement is the governing document, so follow the sizes given here. The photograph should be recent, with a light background, and you have to hold a black slate showing your name and the date written in white chalk. Remember that the details you enter at registration are final and cannot be changed later, so fill the form with full care.

Should You Apply?

Agniveer Vayu is a strong option if you have finished Class 12, are physically fit, and want to serve in the Indian Air Force. The pay and the Seva Nidhi are decent for a fresh 12th pass candidate, the training and discipline are valuable, and a good performance gives you a chance at a long regular career. At the same time, go in with open eyes. It is a four year engagement, only up to a quarter of each batch is retained, and the medical standards, especially the eyesight rules, are strict. If this matches your plan, prepare well for the online test and start working on your fitness now, because the run and exercises are not easy without practice.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the last date to apply for Agniveer Vayu Intake 02/2027?

The online form is open from 6 July 2026 and the last date is 26 July 2026 at 11:00 PM. There is no extension after this date.

Can girls apply for Agniveer Vayu?

Yes. Unmarried female candidates can apply. The number of female candidates taken depends on the service requirement, and the physical test for women is easier than for men.

How many vacancies are there in Agniveer Vayu 2026?

The official advertisement does not fix any total number. The Air Force recruits as per requirement and allots seats state wise. Any fixed number you see online is an unofficial estimate.

What is the salary of an Agniveer Vayu?

The monthly package starts at ₹30,000 in the first year and rises to ₹40,000 in the fourth year. You get 70 percent of this in hand, and at the end of four years you receive the Seva Nidhi of about ₹10.04 lakh, which is tax free.

Is there negative marking in the Agniveer Vayu exam?

Yes. You get 1 mark for a correct answer and lose 0.25 mark for a wrong answer. There is no penalty for a question you leave unanswered.

What eyesight is needed for Agniveer Vayu?

You need 6 by 12 vision in each eye, correctable to 6 by 6, with power up to plus 2.0 for far sightedness and only up to minus 1.0 for near sightedness. A history of LASIK surgery is not accepted.

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