Why Ambala Air Force Station was selected as base for Rafale aircraft

A batch of five Rafale jets, procured from France, will touch down at the Ambala Air Force Station on Wednesday. They will be received by Chief of Air Staff RKS Bhadauria. 

The Ambala Airbase, one of India’s oldest, is under high alert and prohibitory orders have been issued ahead of the much-awaited landing. Here is why Ambala has been chosen as a base for Rafales:

India shares a 740-kilometre Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan and the 3,448-kilometre Line of Actual Control with China. Located 200 kilometres north of Delhi, the Ambala Airbase in Haryana comes under the operational command of the Western Air Command in Delhi.

Its location puts it equidistant from both, the LoC and the LAC. It provides adequate depth for a longer range, both towards the east and the west, former Vice-Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal PK Barbora (Retired) told The Tribune.

“We have adequate area for air-to-air refueling, which is not possible at forward bases,” Barbora said.

In another article, The Tribune quoted IAF officers as saying, that the Ambala Airbase was chosen for Rafales in the western sector, due to a number of factors. These include “depth from the border, base infrastructure and technical facilities, airspace availability for local flying and training as well as allocation of IAF assets at other airbases in the region.”

During the Kargil war, 1999, the airbase played a critical role with 234 operational sorties being carried out from the base. Currently, the airbase has two squadrons of the Jaguar combat aircraft and one squadron of MiG-21 Bison. 

On the eastern front, the Hasimara Air Force Station in West Bengal will serve as the base for Rafales. This is due to the base’s proximity with China and the strategically important, Siliguri corridor.