AFCAT Recruitment 2026: Apply Online, Vacancies, Eligibility & Selection Process

The AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test) Exam is conducted by the Indian Air Force twice in a year for the recruitment of candidates in Short Service Commission (SSC) in Flying Branch and Permanent Commission (PC) and Short Service Commission (SSC) in Ground Duty (Technical and Non-Technical) Branches.

IAF also recruits candidates for the grant of PC/SSC for NCC Special Entry Scheme (Flying Branch) and for Meteorological Entry. It is one of the most coveted jobs in Indian Air Force and a dream job for millions of aspirants across India.
AFCAT Exam consists of three stages: Written Examination, AFSB and Interview round.

POST - AFCAT 1 2024

VACANCY - 317

PAY SCALE - 56,100/- TO 1,77,500/-

QUALIFICATION - GRADUATE [60% IN MATHS & PHYSICS IN 10+2]

FORM FILING DATE - 01/12/2023 TO 30/12/2023

EXAM DATE - February 2024

AGE LIMIT - 20 TO 26

With the help of the LK ACADEMY eLearning app, candidates can clear this examination and secure their selection.

For being eligible for AFCAT, the degree must be recognised by UGC / AICTE /Ministry of HRD. To apply for AFCAT exam, candidates must be a Graduate from any discipline. 

The AFCAT application form was released on November 17. Before applying, check the eligibility criteria. The steps to fill out the AFCAT application form are mentioned below.

• Visit the website, afcat.cdac.in.
• Click on the Apply link.
• The registration form will display on the computer screen.
• Provide the required information to complete the registration.
• Candidates need to fill in their personal details, course preference, if they have appeared in the AFSB earlier or not, communication details, and upload the scanned photograph, signature, etc.
• The final step is to pay the application fees.
• After the successful transaction application will be submitted.

Candidates need to apply online for AFCAT exam only. There is no facility to apply offline. The link to fill the application form is activated on the official website. To apply for AFCAT exam, candidates are first required to register for the exam. The window to edit the application form is made available after the closure of application process.

IAF had announced a total of 256 vacancies for AFCAT 1 2023. A total of 5 vacancies were announced for the Flying Branch, 130 for Ground Duty (Technical) branch, 118 for Ground Duty (Non-Technical) branch. 10 per cent of seats were reserved for the NCC Special Entry for the Flying branch.

AFCAT 2 vacancies 2023 have been announced along with the short notification. A total of 276 vacancies have been announced for AFCAT 2 2023 exam. In 2022, a total of 304 vacancies were announced for AFCAT 2 2022 exam. Out of the total vacancies, 10 per cent of seats out of CDSE vacancies are reserved for Permanent Commission (PC). 10 per cent of seats out of AFCAT vacancy for Short Service Commission SSC are reserved for the NCC Special Entry Flying branch.

Candidates clearing AFCAT exam are offered a salary of INR 56,100-1,77,500. The salary structure is given below. Rank-Flying Officer-Level-10 Pay as per defence matrix-INR 56,100-1,77,500 Military Service Pay (MSP)-INR 15,500 per month. The rank-wise AFCAT Salary is given below: Flying Officer-INR 56,100 1,77,500 Flight Lieutenant- INR 6,13,00-1,93,900 Squadron Leader-INR 6,94,00 2,07,200 Wing Commander-INR 1,21,200 2,12400 Group Captain-INR 1,30,600-2, 15,900 Air Commodore-INR1,39,600-2,17,600 Air Vice Marshal-INR 1,44,200-2,18,200 Air Marshal HAG Scale-INR 1, 82, 200-2,24,100 HAG+Scale- INR 2,05,400 2,24,400 VACS/Airforce Cdr/ Air Marshal (NFSG)0- INR 2,25,000/-(fixed) CAS- INR 2,50,000/-(fixed) Selection of candidates for AFCAT exam is done based on the online test AFSB interview. Candidates are selected as Gazetted Officers in Flying Branch and Ground Duty (Technical and Non-Technical) branches.

The rank-wise salary of AFCAT Officers is given below:

Rank	Level	Pay Scale (In INR)
Flying Officer	Level 10	56,100 – 1,77,500
Flight Lieutenant	Level 10 B	6,13,00-1,93,900
Squadron Leader	Level 11	6,94,00 – 2,07,200
Wing Commander	Level 12A	1,21,200 – 2,12400
Group Captain	Level 13	1,30,600-2, 15,900
Air Commodore	Level 13A	1,39,600-2,17,600
Air Vice Marshal	Level 14	1,44,200-2,18,200
Air Marshal HAG Scale	Level 15	1, 82, 200-2,24,100
HAG+Scale	Level 16	2,05,400 – 2,24,400
VACS/Airforce Cdr/ Air Marshal (NFSG)	Level 17	2,25,000/- (fixed)
CAS	Level 18	2,50,000/- (fixed)

AFCAT exam or Air Force Common Admission Test is conducted by Indian Air Force to select candidates as Class 1 gazetted officers in the Flying and Ground Duty (Technical and Non-Technical) branches. EKT or Engineering Knowledge Test is conducted for the candidates who apply for the technical branches. AFCAT exam carries a total of 100 questions from General Awareness, Verbal Ability in English Numerical Ability, Military Reasoning, and Aptitude test. The total marks allotted to the AFCAT exam are 300. The duration of the test is two hours. EKT carries 50 questions that are Engineering subject-specific. Questions are asked from Mechanical, Computer Science, and Electrical & Electronics. The total marks allotted to the test are 150 and is held for 45 minutes.