The Airman cadre provides opportunities for men with matriculate or below, 10+2 /Intermediate, graduates, Diploma holders and postgraduates in either of the three combatant groups i.e 'X', 'Y' or 'Z' of the Technical and the Non-technical trades. Candidates short listed after the initial selection procedure, are allotted a suitable trade and go through a rigorous training regimen at one of the training institutes. Thereafter, they are inducted and posted as Airmen at any of the Air Force Stations. 

The career options and eligibility for the candidates having different educational qualifications for the Airmen Cadre in the different trades of the Air force are given in the following links.

• Matriculate & Below
• Intermediate (10+2)
• Graduate
• Post Graduate
• Diploma in Engineering

Physical Standards

Physical fitness is one of the most important prerequisites for joining the Air Force. Irrespective of the trade you are applying for, you must fulfill the basic physical standards.

Basic requirements for all candidates

• Height
  To join the Air Force as an airman, you should be at least 152.5 cm. tall. There are however, some trades that have different requirements.

  • Mechanical Transport Driver and Certain Technical Trades

    • Minimum height - 165 cm.

    • Minimum leg length - 99 cm.
      

  • IAF Police

    • Minimum height - 175 cm.
      

  • Ground Training Instructor and Musician

    • Minimum height - 167 cm.
      

• Clear Medical Record
  You should have a clear medical record, with history clear of any of the following:

  • Mental Sickness/Fits

  • Diseases/Skin Ailments

  • Surgical Deformity
    

• Chest

  • Minimum Expanded Chest (75cm)

  • Minimum Range Of Expansion (5cm)
    

• Vision
  Some minimum visual standards that you must fulfil in order to qualify.

  • You should have a minimum corrected vision of at least 6 / 12 in each eye. You could also have 6 / 6 in the healthier eye and 6 / 18 in weaker eye with spectacles with power not more than + / -5.50 Dioptres, inclusive of astigmatism in any meridian with full field of vision and Minimum CP-IV unsafe colour vision.

  There are, however, other detailed visual and colour standards that are specific to different trades.

• Hearing
  You should have normal hearing i.e. you should be able to hear forced whisper from a distance of 6 meters in each ear individually.

• Dental
  You should have healthy gums and a good set of teeth.

It is advisable that candidates reporting for medical exam must ensure a high level of personal hygiene and bring the latest prescription and spectacles for corrected vision to avoid delay.

Height And Weight Standards for Men

Height in cm. (without shoes)	Average weight in Kg.
	15-17 yrs	18-22 yrs	23-27 yrs	28-32 yrs	33-37 yrs	38-42 yrs	43-47 yrs	48 yrs & above
152 154 156 158 160 162 164 166 168 170 172 174 176 178 180 182 184 186 188 190 192 194 196	46.0 47.0 48.0 49.0 50.0 51.0 52.5 53.5 55.0 56.5 58.0 59.5 61.0 62.5 64.0 66.0 67.0 69.0 70.5 72.0 73.5 75.0 76.5	47.0 48.0 49.0 50.0 51.0 52.5 53.5 55.0 56.5 58.0 60.0 61.0 62.5 64.0 65.5 67.5 70.0 70.5 72.0 73.5 75.0 76.5 78.0	49.0 50.0 51.0 52.0 53.0 54.5 55.5 57.0 58.5 60.0 61.5 63.5 65.0 66.5 68.0 69.5 71.5 73.0 75.0 76.0 78.0 79.0 81.0	50.0 51.5 52.5 54.0 55.0 56.0 57.5 59.0 60.5 62.0 63.5 65.5 67.0 68.5 70.5 72.0 74.0 75.5 77.5 78.5 80.5 81.5 83.5	51.0 52.5 53.5 55.0 56.0 57.5 59.0 60.5 62.0 64.0 65.5 67.5 69.0 70.5 72.5 74.0 76.0 78.0 79.5 80.5 82.0 83.0 85.0	52.0 53.0 54.0 55.5 56.5 58.0 59.5 61.0 63.0 64.5 66.0 68.0 69.5 71.5 73.0 75.0 76.5 78.5 80.0 81.0 82.5 83.5 85.5	52.5 53.5 54.5 56.0 57.0 58.5 60.0 61.5 63.5 65.0 66.5 68.5 70.0 72.0 74.0 75.5 77.5 79.0 81.0 82.0 83.5 84.5 86.5	53.0 54.0 56.0 56.5 57.5 59.0 60.5 62.0 64.0 65.5 67.5 69.0 71.0 72.5 74.5 76.5 78.0 80.0 82.0 83.0 84.5 85.5 86.5

Source : Indian Air force Official site