Vice Admiral Rahul Vilas Gokhale assumed charge as the Chief of Staff Western Naval Command on 01 October 2025. Vice Admiral Gokhale was commissioned on 01 January 1992 and is an alumnus of NDA Khadakwasla, DSSC Wellington, Naval War College Goa and Australian Defence College, Australia.
A Navigation and Direction specialist, he has held various key afloat and shore appointments, including Command of NS Khukri and INS Kolkata and the base depot ship INS Circars.
As a Flag Officer, he served as Flag Officer Sea Training at Kochi, Assistant Chief of Personnel (Human Resource Development) at NHQ, and commanded the Western Fleet the Sword Arm of Indian Navy.
