Ambala Air Force Station

History

In 1919 immediately after the First World War (1914-18), first airstrip was built in Haryana when RAF Ambala was created and a Flying Instruction School (FIS) was formed here.

On 1 April 1920, No. 28 Squadron RAF which was earlier disbanded in Britain in January 1920, was reformed at RAF Ambala by renumbering 114 Squadron, an army cooperation squadron equipped with the Bristol F2b Fighter. It may have also retained some Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2s, although if operated, they were soon phased out. The squadron operated over the North-West Frontier, moving to Kohat in December 1921.

On 1st April 1938 just before the Second World War (1939-45), Ambala was approved as the permanent Station Headquarters when some staff from the Drigh Road Karachi Airfield was moved to Ambala, including the Pilot Officers Goyal, Arjan Singh and Prithipal Singh, and in June 1938 two squadrons were moved here, No. 1 Squadron IAF (The Tigers) - the oldest squadron of the Indian Air Force and No. 28 Squadron RAF. Royal Air Force units based at Ambala during British India era included:

• No. 3 Squadron RAF between 1 April and 30 September 1921 without any aircraft
• No. 5 Squadron RAF between 26 October 1922 and 10 March 1924 with the Bristol F.2B Fighter
• No. 20 Squadron RAF between 17 October 1921 and 24 October 1922 with the Bristol F.2B
• No. 28 Squadron RAF between 1 April 1920 and 15 October 1921 with the Bristol F.2B
• No. 31 Squadron RAF between 13 March 1924 and 15 December 1926 with the Bristol F.2B
• No. 60 Squadron RAF between 3 March 1939 and 19 September 1940 with the Bristol Blenheim I
• No. 99 Squadron RAF between 15 June and 26 September 1919 with the Airco DH.9A
• No. 114 Squadron RAF between 2 October 1919 and 1 April 1920 with the Bristol F.2B
• No. 1 (Indian) Service Flying Training School RAF, disbanded 1 April 1946 here.
• No. 659 Squadron RAF between January 1946 and May 1947 with the Taylorcraft Auster V.

On 1 April 1946 1 SFTS, 151 OTU and 1 (Advanced) Flying Unit merged to become the Advanced Flying School (India) at Ambala.

After India's independence in August 1947, Ambala became independent India's first IAF station. In 1947, FIS Ambala was moved to Tambaram near Chennai in Tamil Nadu, at Tambaram Air Force Station.

In both the 1965 and 1971 wars, Ambala Air Force Base was attacked by the Pakistani Air Force. In 1965, the Pakistanis struck Ambala and reportedly destroyed some 25 Indian planes just after they had returned from missions (the PAF did not initially claim any IAF aircraft during the attack on Ambala due to non-availability of damage in night bombing). Indian Air Force rejected the Pakistani claim and stated that no aircraft were lost in Ambala during the war.

On February 26, 2019, for India's 2019 Balakot airstrike in Pakistan, Mirage fighters took off from the Ambala air base, and the whole operation took 30 minutes.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in India in 2020-21, the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations flew relief supplies from Russia to Ambala.

Assets

In 2018–19, Ambala Airforce station housed a squadron of SEPECAT Jaguar of No. 5 Squadron IAF and No. 14 Squadron IAF, and aging MiG-21bis of No. 21 Squadron IAF (Ankush). In May 2020, the base became the house of the first squadron of Dassault Rafale fighter jets. The second squadron is based at Hasimara Air Force Station.

A dedicated flight training facility and an MRO facility for the Rafale fleet operates out of the airbase.

Ambala Domestic Airport

Civil

The foundation stone for the civil enclave at Ambala was laid in October 2023, on a 20-acre site next to the airforce base. Land for the civil enclave had been acquired from the ministry of defense for Rupees 133 crores, and another Rupees 40 crores were allocated for infrastructure, while Rupees 16 crore was set aside for construction of the terminal building. Security for the airport will be provided by the Haryana Police. The project was initially approved in December 2018 under the Central Government's UDAN 3.0 scheme but faced delays due to land acquisition issues.

Inauguration of the civil enclave is expected to be around 15th August 2025, in the presence of Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Initial flights are expected to be operated to cities like Jammu, Srinagar, Lucknow, and Ayodhya.

The IATA code AMI has now been officially assigned to Ambala Airport, formally placing Ambala on the global aviation map.

Notes

Bibliography

References

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2. "Five Rafale jets leave for India: What happens next".
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6. (26 February 2019). "'Wait For Our Response,' Says Pak Army After India's Air Strikes".
7. "News18 Newsletter {{!}} All We Know So Far About India's Surgical Strike 2.0 on Pakistan".
8. (2026-01-16). "Indian weapons must on all 114 Rafale jets, govt tells Dassault".
9. (16 October 2023). "Now an airport in Ambala: Here's what you need to know".
10. (11 January 2025). "Haryana Police to be deployed at Ambala airport, operational by February: Vij".
11. (11 January 2025). "New Ambala airport to be operational by Feb, says Vij".
12. (12 January 2025). "Equipment delays push back Ambala Civil Enclave operations".
13. (2 August 2025). "Rajnath 'okays' opening of Ambala Cantt Airport".
14. [https://en.theharyanastory.com/article/1765/good-news-for-haryana-flights-to-four-cities-from-ambala-airport-coming-soon Good News for Haryana: Flights to Four Cities from Ambala Airport Coming Soon], theharyanastory.com, 24 Mar 2025.