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The Indian Air Force currently operates seven Air Commands. Each command is headed by an Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the rank of Air Marshal.
The Air Force currently has over 60 air stations all over India. These are grouped into seven commands: Western Air Command at New Delhi, Delhi. Eastern Air Command at Shillong, Meghalaya. Central Air Command at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Southern Air Command at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. South Western Air Command at Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Training Command at Bengaluru, Karnataka, and Maintenance Command at Nagpur, Maharashtra. The largest airbase is in Hindon, Uttar Pradesh.
Gwalior hosts the Indian Air Force's elite Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE), a premier unit for advanced fighter pilot training in aerial tactics, comparable to the US Navy's TOPGUN, focusing on operational doctrines and tactics for aircraft.
There are a number of new air stations being built across India, in line with India's strategic doctrine. The Indian Navy has some separate air stations for its aviation wing.
The Western Air Command is the largest air command. It operates sixteen airforce stations in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The Eastern Air Command operates fifteen airforce stations in eastern and north-eastern India. The Central Air Command operates two airforce stations in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and surrounding states of central India. Southern Air Command's tasks include protecting the vital shipping routes. It operates nine air stations in Southern India and two in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. South Western Air Command is the front line of defence against Pakistan. This important command operates twelve air stations in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
List of air stations[edit | edit source]
Note: Station and unit details are from Scramble.nl (2009) and outdated.[1] Article needs to be revised/updated.
The other Air Force stations that come under Maintenance Command are not air stations and are mostly signal units and station repair depots situated in different towns. Delhi, for example, has a few BRDs and SUs that come under Maintenance Command.
List of advance landing grounds[edit | edit source]
Along China border[edit | edit source]
The Chinese Military has an integrated Western Theater Command across the LAC with India.[14] The Indian military has divided the LAC into 3 sectors - the Western Sector across Ladakh and Chinese-held Aksai Chin, the Central Sector across Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand states, and the Eastern Sector across Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.[15] Similarly, the Indian Airforce has the Delhi-based Western Air Command, Prayagraj-based Central Air Command, and Shillong-based Eastern Air Command to cover the LAC.
- Ladakh
- Daulat Beg Oldi ALG[16] serves Trans-Karakoram Tract (Shaksgam), Aksai Chin and Siachen Glacier.
- Kargil Airport ALG
- Fukche ALG[16] serves the Demchok sector.
- Padum ALG[16] Serves Ladakh LAC and Kargil LOC as a second line of defence airport.
- Thoise ALG[17]
- Parma Valley ALG near Chushul (to be reactivated)[18][19][20]
- Himachal Pradesh shares a 250 km border with Tibet (China).[21]
- Shimla Airport,[21] civil airport available for military use. Serves Kaurik, Tashigang-Shipki La and Nelang-Pulam Sumda disputed area.
- Kullu-Manali Airport,[21] civil airport available for military use. Serves Kaurik, Tashigang, Shipki La, and the Nelang-Pulam Sumda disputed area.
- Kibber-Rangrik, surveyed as of July 2020,[21] construction was approved in the January 2023 to be completed by 2024–25.[22] Will be closest ALG to Chumar, Kaurik, and Tashigang-Shipki La disputed area.
- Uttarakhand has 350 km border with Tibet.[23]
- Chinyalisaur Airport ALG serves the disputed Barahoti and Nelang-Pulam Sumda sectors. ITBP has 42 BoPs (border outposts) in Barahoti sector and Mana Pass area (Nelang-Pulam Sumda sector).[23]
- Pithoragarh Airport ALG serves the disputed Kalapani territory.
- Gauchar Airport ALG.
- Sikkim
- Pakyong Airport AGL serves Doklam disputed area.
- Arunachal Pradesh
- Aalo ALG, formerly Along.[24][25]
- Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground.[24]
- Pasighat ALG[24]
- Tawang Air Force Station
- Tuting ALG[24]
- Vijoynagar ALG[24]
- Walong Advanced Landing Ground.[26]
- Ziro ALG[24][25]
- Daporijo ALG.[27][28]
- Alinye ALG, Dibang Valley District.[27][28]
- To be reactivated as of September 2025. The airstrip was utilised by the United States Air Force as a staging ground during The Hump airlift campaign of the World War II. Following the Indian Independence, the strip was converted into mud-paved runway. However, the plans to revive the facility never went through and has not seen combat service since 1947.[18]
- Hayuliang ALG, Anjaw District.
Along Pakistan border[edit | edit source]
List of road runways[edit | edit source]
See also[edit | edit source]
- Similar capabilities lists
- India-China Border Roads
- Indian military satellites
- List of active Indian Air Force aircraft squadrons
- List of Indian Navy bases
- List of active Indian Navy ships
- India's overseas military bases
- Indian Nuclear Command Authority
- Other related topics
- Armed Forces Special Operations Division
- Defence Cyber Agency
- Integrated Defence Staff
- Indian Armed Forces
- Strategic Forces Command
- Special Forces of India
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Scramble.nl, Indian Air Force Order of Battle Archived 22 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine, accessed October 2011
- ↑ "Maruti to vacate area within restricted zone of Gurugram Air Force station". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. India: The Times of India. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ↑ Kumar, Kumar. "Gurugram: 6,000 houses near air force ammunition depot face threat of demolition". indiatoday.in. India: India Today. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ↑ Verma, Sanjeev (2 February 2012). "Haryana allows illegal Hotel within restricted zone of Gurgaon Air Force Station". hindustantimes.com. India: Hindustan Times. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ↑ Indian Navy launches Information Fusion Centre to boost maritime security, The Week, 22 December 2018.
- ↑ Defence minister inaugurates Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC) in Gurgaon, GKToday.
- ↑ 1980, "Haryana Review", Volume 14, Page 47.
- ↑ 2017, Fridabad disaster management plan, Govt of Haryana, p23.
- ↑ 13 Nov 2016, Ground Threat for air warriors, Times of India.
- ↑ 1991, Sainik Samachar: The Pictorial Weekly of the Armed Forces, p26.
- ↑ Singh, Rahul (12 November 2025). "IAF chief lands C-130J, inaugurates Nyoma airbase in Ladakh". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
- ↑ "Indian Air Force :: Air Force Stations". Bharat-rakshak.com. 30 September 2009. Archived from the original on 16 May 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
- ↑ "Himalayan Eagles land in Vadodara". newKerela.com. 1 September 2011. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ↑ "Eye on India, China raises Tibet military command rank | Central Tibetan Administration". tibet.net. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ↑ "Twisting India's Chicken's Neck". lowyinstitute.org. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 India plans AGL strips, Deccan Herald, 2014.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Parma valley ALG, cogitasia.com.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Banerjee, Ajay (25 September 2025). "Eye on China, MoD to revive 2 airstrips in Ladakh, Arunachal". The Tribune. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ↑ Joshi, Prateek (26 July 2016). "India's Growing Military Footprint in Eastern Ladakh: Facing China". cogitASIA Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Asia Policy Blog. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
- ↑ O'Donnell, Frank; Bollfrass, Alexander K. (March 2020). "The Strategic Postures of China and India: A Visual Guide". Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 Himachal Pradesh: Demand for airstrip in Spiti area, Times of India, 17 July 2020.
- ↑ To counter China, Nyoma airfield in Ladakh to be full-fledged base in 2 years, The Tribune, 5 Jan 2023.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Eyeing national security, Uttarakhand, ITBP to improve border infrastructure, Hindustan Times, 18 July 2020.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 24.4 24.5 Hooda, Deepshikha (13 July 2018). "IAF to have 7 operational Advanced Landing Grounds in Arunachal Pradesh in a month". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Upgraded Advanced Landing Grounds at Ziro and Along Inaugurated". Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
- ↑ "Walong landing ground in Arunachal Pradesh ready for operations". Archived from the original on 31 October 2015.
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 "UDAN reaches Arunachal Pradesh; first commercial flight flagged off | Business Standard News". Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Commercial flight: Arunachal Pradesh finally gets connected with Guwahati by a commercial flight - the Economic Times". Archived from the original on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
External links[edit | edit source]
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