Indian Air Force Flying Squadrons: Strength, Famous Units and the Fleet

What a Flying Squadron Is

A squadron is the basic flying unit. It is based at an air force station, belongs to a wing and reports through an operational command. It is divided into flights: the first operational flight (1 April 1933) was "A" Flight with four Wapiti biplanes, the start of No. 1 Squadron.

• Air Headquarters, New DelhiChief of the Air Staff · Air Chief Marshal
  • Commandseven in all · AOC-in-C · Air Marshal
    • Wing and air force stationthe base and its group of squadrons
      • Squadronthe unit that flies · Wing Commander or Group Captain
        • Flightssub-units of a squadron

• It has a number. Written "17 Squadron" or "17 Sqn" in PIB releases. Numbers do not follow aircraft type or raising date: 101 Squadron was formed on 1 May 1949, 17 Squadron on 1 October 1951 and 18 Squadron on 15 April 1965, per PIB.
• It usually has a nickname, and examiners ask the pairing.
• Its number can lapse and return. A squadron without aircraft is number-plated, kept on the books. 18 Squadron was number-plated in April 2016 and revived with the Tejas in 2020; 17 Squadron was resurrected on 10 September 2019 and then took the Rafale.
• Its commander is a Wing Commander or a Group Captain. Older books say Wing Commander (a Lieutenant Colonel's equivalent), but PIB names a Group Captain (a Colonel's equivalent) as commanding officer of 17 Squadron in 2025, of 18 in 2020 and of 45 in 2016. The ladder is on rank equivalence.

Sanctioned and Actual Fighter Squadrons

The count in the news is of fighter squadrons only; transport, helicopter, trainer and radar units are counted separately. The two numbers are how many the Air Force is sanctioned (authorised) to have, and how many it has.

The gap is arithmetic: older fleets leave faster than new aircraft arrive. The MiG-21 served from 1963, and PIB records that about 850 of the 11,500 built worldwide flew with the Air Force. Replacements come from the indigenous Tejas Mk1A, a further Rafale batch under the Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft programme, and the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, still in development. The press explains 42 as planning for a two-front contingency, so it is a planning number, not a law. Is a squadron count the right measure of air power? Practise that GD topic with our GD guide.

Famous Squadron Numbers and Nicknames

These squadrons keep appearing in releases, ceremonies and question papers. Each row uses a fact PIB or the official record has published; aircraft shown are those the news attached to the unit.

The pairs to remember: Rafale is 17 and 101, Tejas is 45 and 18, and the MiG-21 began with 28. Where squadrons sit today is not published, so we do not list it. The fleet in current-affairs form is in our explainer on how the Air Force is built.

The Fleet by Role

The Air Force does not publish how many aircraft of each type it flies, so we give no totals. Below is the fleet by role, with origin and whether it is indigenous or imported. PIB's report on the Vayushakti-26 firepower demonstration (27 February 2026) lists the types that flew: Rafale, Su-30 MKI, Mirage-2000, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Mi-17, C-130J, C-295, C-17, ALH Dhruv and LCH Prachand, over 130 aircraft in all.

Trainers matter more than their size suggests: the road to the front line runs through the PC-7, Kiran and Hawk, then a Tejas twin-seater (our explainer Trainers, Not Fighters). The radar aircraft fire no shot but let every fighter see further; Netra is the indigenous one.

Orders, Deliveries and What Changed

Orders, unlike fleet totals, are published by the Ministry of Defence, and questions are built on them. An order is not a delivery: these dates are signatures, not arrivals.

Guide: Pages in This Branch

This page is the overview. The five below take each role in turn, and the rest sit one step away.

Back up at the Indian Air Force hub, or see the seven commands these squadrons report to. Where Army, Navy and Air Force aircraft work together is on tri-services.

Exam pins

Asked in past papers

Past papers use the fleet for "which of these is true" questions on origin, design and role. Three show the shape.

Practice MCQs (with answers)

1. The Indian Air Force formally decommissioned the MiG-21 on 26 September 2025 at
   1. Jodhpur
   2. Chandigarh
   3. Ambala
   4. Bengaluru
2. Which squadron was the first in the Air Force to operate the Tejas?
   1. No. 45 "Flying Daggers"
   2. No. 18 "Flying Bullets"
   3. No. 17 "Golden Arrows"
   4. No. 101 "Falcons"
3. Which squadron was resurrected on 10 September 2019 and then became the first Rafale squadron?
   1. No. 101
   2. No. 18
   3. No. 45
   4. No. 17
4. How many fighter squadrons is the Indian Air Force sanctioned to have?
   1. 36
   2. 39
   3. 42
   4. 45
5. Which of these helicopters has a rotor at each end of the fuselage?
   1. Prachand
   2. Apache
   3. Dhruv
   4. Chinook
6. In March 2026 the Defence Acquisition Council approved Medium Transport Aircraft to replace the
   1. C-17 and C-130J
   2. An-32 and Il-76
   3. Avro and Dornier
   4. Il-78 and A-50

Where to Go Next

Boards ask "tell us about your chosen service", and a candidate who names the aircraft, says what each does and quotes the squadron count with its date stands out; start with our SSB interview tips. The career in the Indian Air Force page shows the entry routes and the AFCAT defence awareness notes cover the syllabus. Cavalier's AFCAT coaching batches cover general awareness, military aptitude, reasoning, numerical ability and English, and prepare you for the Air Force Selection Board.