Hindon Air Force Station, one of the Indian Air Force’s prominent bases, has an unusual origin story. Unlike other IAF bases, Hindon was never meant to be a military airfield. Its transformation from a planned civil airport to a key IAF station is a tale of necessity and adaptation.
In the 1960s, Palam Airfield was primarily an IAF airfield with a civil enclave. It also housed the Headquarters of Operations Command. As commercial aviation expanded with the introduction of Comets and Boeing 707s, it became evident that Palam could no longer handle the increasing civil and military air traffic.
To address this, a new greenfield civil airport was planned near Ghaziabad, east of the Yamuna River. The site was selected, and construction began. The aim was to create a modern airport separate from the military operations at Palam.
However, by the time the new airport was nearing completion, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MOCA) faced a significant logistical challenge. The only road link over the Yamuna River was the old steel bridge near Red Fort, and no funds were available to build additional bridges to improve access. This logistical bottleneck led to a change of heart at MOCA.
With MOCA losing interest in the new site, the inevitable happened. The Indian Air Force was tasked with taking over the new airport near the Hindon River, giving it the name Hindon Air Force Station. Consequently, a significant portion of Palam was handed over for commercial operations. On 1 June 1965, Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh inaugurated the 28 Wing at Hindon, marking the official establishment of the base.
Due to its civilian origins, Hindon Air Force Station has a unique maintenance history. Unlike other military airfields maintained by the Military Engineer Services (MES), Hindon was maintained by the Public Works Department (PWD). This distinction persisted for quite some time and may still be the case to this day.
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