Back in the day, there was a pressing need – and thankfully, the ability – for the Air Force to operate from various smaller airfields scattered across the country. While runway conditions and length mattered less, the need for accommodation, technical support, equipment, and POL (Petrol, Oil, and Lubricants) couldn’t be ignored. The IAF’s answer? A skeleton unit called the Mobile Echelon Unit – their very own rapid deployment force.
Genesis of a Concept
An echelon is a word thrown around in military circles quite often, with several meanings. An echelon formation is when units, such as soldiers, vehicles, or aircraft, are arranged in parallel lines, stepped to the right or left of each other, creating a distinctive “stepped” look. More broadly, “echelon” refers to levels in a hierarchy, like the “upper echelons of management.”
A mobile echelon, in military terminology, is a highly mobile combat formation designed for rapid deployment and manoeuvrability, typically comprising various units such as motorised rifle units, artillery, and aviation assets.
The concept wasn’t born overnight. During the 1947-48 India-Pakistan War, mobile echelons from 3 Wing at Palam had already moved to Jammu and Srinagar, successfully enabling fighter squadron ops and Dakota operations. This early taste of mobile operations would prove invaluable.
The Perfect Storm for Change
Around 1954-55, the IAF underwent major changes. The service was shifting to a “semi-centralised servicing system” – third- and fourth-line servicing was moving to Base Repair Depots and HAL facilities. The Maintenance Command, formed in 1955, assumed these responsibilities, leaving Wings to handle only 1st and 2nd line maintenance at the squadron and unit levels.
At the same time, the IAF brass realised they needed to be able to operate from multiple bases at short notice during conflicts. However, they lacked the resources and manpower to establish Wings at every possible airstrip across the country.
The solution? Establish one mobile echelon as an experimental unit that could function as a nucleus wing headquarters for a month at any airstrip. If operations needed to go beyond a month, a proper Wing HQ would take over. It was a natural outcome of accepting the new servicing system.
Birth of the First MEU
In May 1957, a young Flight Lieutenant, CV Parker, received an interesting posting – to head to Ambala and set up the very first Mobile Echelon Unit. Years later, writing in Vayu Magazine’s 2022 edition, Air Vice Marshal CV Parker, MVC, remembered:
“In 1957, as a Flt Lt, I was posted to Ambala to set up and command the very first MEU (Mobile Echelon Unit) in our air force. It comprised just one officer, ninety airmen of all trades and nearly fifty specialist vehicles. I wrote the history of the unit and handed it over to my successor a year later.”
Parker’s MEU had a straightforward yet crucial job: to provide the necessary administrative and domestic facilities for one Fighter/Bomber Squadron to operate from a forward base for up to four weeks. Think of it as a mobile wing headquarters that could pack up and move anywhere in the country.
The Anatomy of Mobility
What made the MEU truly revolutionary was its lean yet comprehensive structure. Typically comprising 2-3 officers from flying, administrative, and technical branches, along with 90-140 airmen and specialised equipment, the MEU was designed to function as a compact but fully operational wing. During peacetime, the unit remained at its parent base but regularly undertook exercises and detachments across the country, honing its rapid deployment capabilities.
The underlying philosophy was if operations needed to continue beyond the MEU’s four-week mandate, a regular Wing Headquarters would take over, allowing the mobile unit to redeploy elsewhere or return to base for reconstitution.
After 1962: Time to Expand
The 1962 Sino-Indian War marked a turning point for the MEU concept. The conflict highlighted the need for expanded rapid deployment capabilities across India’s vast frontiers. The original MEU at Ambala was redesignated as No. 1 MEU, and two additional units were established: No. 2 MEU at Tezpur/Bagdogra and No. 3 MEU at Bamrauli (Allahabad). This expansion aligned with the IAF’s command structure, with one MEU allocated to each of the operational commands – Western, Central, and Eastern.
The concept continued to evolve. By 1970, the IAF had raised No. 4 and No. 5 MEMU (Mobile Echelon Maintenance Unit) at Amritsar and Sirsa, respectively. The nomenclature change reflected the units’ enhanced focus on maintenance capabilities, likely in response to emerging threats in the western sector.
The Care and Maintenance Innovation
Recognising that completely abandoned airstrips posed reactivation challenges, the IAF introduced another innovative concept after 1962 – the Care and Maintenance Unit (C&MU). These skeleton units maintained basic security and limited functionality at strategic airstrips, ensuring that MEUs could quickly establish operations when deployed.
Between 1962 and 1972, the IAF activated at least 15 C&MUs across various locations, including Vadodara, Dimapur, Purnea, Bihta, Darbhanga, Bakshi Ka Talab, Nal, Sirsa, Sarsawa, Bhuj, Jaisalmer, Naliya, and Kargil. The synergy was clear: a MEU could rapidly deploy to a C&MU location and immediately commence operations.
Trial by Fire: The 1971 War
The 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War provided the ultimate test for the MEU concept. Then Air Chief Marshal PC Lal documented the deployment in his memoir “My Years with the IAF”:
“Sqn Ldr Jog, OC Flying, Ambala, was appointed the base commander at Amritsar, and entrusted with the task of getting the infrastructure ready for the efficient operation of this prestigious little unit. To begin with, there were only two officers and fifty or sixty men. Tents were put up. Bunkers were built. Mobile Echelon Maintenance Units (MEMUs) were set up.”
The MEUs performed admirably during the conflict, but the war also revealed a critical limitation. The time required for a MEU to deploy to a base and establish combat-ready operations proved longer than ideal for the rapid tempo of modern air warfare.
Evolution to Forward Base Support Units
After nearly a year of post-war analysis, the IAF made a doctrinal shift. In August 1972, the MEU/MEMU concept was abolished and replaced with Forward Base Support Units (FBSUs). This wasn’t an abandonment of the mobile concept but rather its refinement.
The key difference was permanence with flexibility. FBSUs remained at their designated airbases year-round, maintaining infrastructure and capabilities even without permanently based squadrons. This approach enabled much swifter activation during conflicts while retaining the rapid deployment advantages of the original MEU concept.
Six FBSUs were initially established in August 1972: 1 FBSU at Amritsar, 2 FBSU at Sirsa, 3 FBSU at Nal (Bikaner), 4 FBSU at Jaisalmer, 5 FBSU at Uttarlai, and 6 FBSU at Bhuj. This network covered the entire western theatre with bases positioned close to the border for rapid activation.
The Lasting Impact
As Air Vice Marshal Parker noted, the history of that first MEU may well be “buried in the basement of Air HQ,” but its legacy lives on. Many of the original FBSU locations have grown into full-fledged wings, proving their strategic value. Some continue to play the role envisaged way back in 1957, ready to launch combat aircraft and operations at short notice.
Leave a Reply