In the wake of
World War II, the
British Raj built an airfield at the old town of
Jacobabad in 1942 for use by the
Royal Air Force. After
Pakistan's independence in 1947, the airfield was inherited by the
Civil Aviation Department who in 1967, granted the
PAF operational and administrative control of the airfield. Jacobabad airfield resultantly became a
Forward operating base and functioned as a satellite station of
PAF Base Masroor and later
PAF Base Samungli. The airfield was activated amid the
Kargil War in 1999 during which
General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons of the
11 Squadron "Arrows" were deployed there for Air alert duties. It was again activated after the
United States invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, in which the airbase was heavily used by
NATO for
Operation Enduring Freedom. It remained the hub of logistic support operations for NATO forces in
Afghanistan till November 2004. From 2005 and 2009, the airbase hosted many national and multi-nation military exercises including the first of "Exercise Falcon Talon" series along with Exercise High Mark in 2005 and 2010. Many facilities have also been constructed for the airbase's community over the years which included a Sports Complex, Churches for Christian community, water filteration plants etc.
Chief Minister of Sindh,
Murad Ali Shah, said that nine Pakistan Air Force personnel were injured at the Jacobabad airbase during the Indian strikes. Satellite imagery from 4 June showed partial roof coverings and the absence of debris that had been visible in earlier images taken on 11 May. The images, obtained via
Maxar Technologies, indicated repair work. == Units ==