The base was originally operated by the Royal Air Force as RAF Chaklala and, during the Second World War, parachute training flights were conducted.
In 1947, it was transferred to the then Royal Pakistan Air Force (RPAF). Afterwards, it began use as a transport hub and forward base, with the PAF's fleet of various transport aircraft operating from it. By 1958, the base was equipped with five brick and steel hangars and accommodation for 1200 personnel. It had storage for 50,000 gallons of fuel.
After the Pakistan earthquake of 2005, 300 U.S. troops as well as U.S. aircraft were deployed to Chaklala to aid in relief efforts. According to an anonymous 2013 source, the U.S. had been allowed permanent military presence at Chaklala since late 2001 for handling logistics efforts and other movements in relation to the war in Afghanistan.
In 2009 the PAF's first of four Il-78aerial refuelling tanker aircraft was delivered to PAF Base Chaklala and the No. 10 MRTT (Multi Role Tanker Transport) squadron was established there.
The name of the base was changed in 2012 from PAF Base Chaklala to PAF Base Nur Khan in remembrance of its first Base Commander in 1947, Air MarshalNur Khan. Nur Khan was also the second Pakistani chief of the Pakistan Air Force and a veteran of several conflicts fought by Pakistan.
On 10 May, the Indian Air Force carried out airstrikes on the Nur Khan Airbase, targeting runways and military infrastructure. According to Indian defense officials, the operation was intended as a "calibrated response" to cross-border attacks. According to an eye-witness and two Pakistani security officials, the attack on Nur Khan airbase saw at least two missile strikes as well as drone attacks. Pakistan’s military stated that its air defense systems intercepted most of the incoming missiles, and no critical assets were lost. However, according to a Reuters citing an official who visited the base the next day, the barrage hit two roofs and hit the hangar of a refueling plane. According to William Goodhind, a geospatial analyst at Contested Ground, two mobile control centers at the Nur Khan airbase were damaged. Further The Washington Post, also reported videos recorded from a parking lot nearby which "showed smoke billowing from the damaged area". According to Air Forces Monthly, the missiles struck the operations room of the 35th Composite Transport Wing, destroying two fuel trucks and collaterally damaging one Lockheed C-130 Hercules of the No. 6 Squadron PAF at the aforementioned hangar.
A ceasefire was proposed after these airstrikes. Within hours of India's missile-drone strikes on several Pakistani airbases, especially Nur Khan, reportedly prompted US intervention for a ceasefire agreement. The base is a strategic asset for PAF as "one of the central transport hubs" and "home to the air refueling capability" (No. 10 Squadron). The facility is also just over a mile from the headquarters of Strategic Plans Division responsible for Pakistan's nuclear arsenal which includes over 170 warheads. The New York Times also cited a former American official who stated, "Pakistan's deepest fear is of its nuclear command authority being decapitated" and that the Indian missile strikes were interpreted to be a warning for India's capability to do the same. According to Christopher Clary, an associate professor at the University at Albany, "So, an attack on the facility may have been perceived as more dangerous than India intended– and the two sides should not conclude that it is possible to have a conflict without it going nuclear". On 14 May, Reuters reported that Indian strikes on Nur Khan airbase had alarmed US officials, due to the base's proximity to Pakistan's Strategic Plans Division.
The Afghan Taliban were reported by Indian sources to have launched drone strikes against PAF Nur Khan on 2 March 2026.
Units
Flying and notable non-flying units based at Nur Khan airbase complex.
The base has surrounding facilities including the Frontier Works Organization Headquarters, Chaklala Railway Station and the Joint Services Headquarters (JSHQ). Two housing schemes Askaris VIII and IX are also located alongside Nur Khan road that extends to the main entrance of the base from Airport Road. The Centre for Aerospace and Security Studies, a research think tank founded by the Pakistan Air Force, is located next to Nur Khan Base.
↑Army Map Service and Military Plans Division (1 July 1958). Middle East Airfield Study (MEAFS), Vol. 2(PDF) (Technical report). United States: Department of the Army. p.103. Archived from the original(PDF) on 15 December 2024. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
↑Warnes, Alan (July 2010). "On The Edge". Air Forces Monthly (July 2010). United Kingdom: Key Publishing Limited: 56. Retrieved 9 July 2010. Last year saw the delivery of the first Il-78 Midas air-to-air refueller and also the first Russian aircraft into the inventory - hence the R in front of the serial. The newly established 10 Multi Role Tanker Transport Sqn at Chaklala operates the aircraft, which will be joined by a second example.
↑Ellis-Petersen, Hannah; Baloch, Shah Meer (10 May 2025). "India and Pakistan accuse each other of cross-border attacks on military bases". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 May 2025. Nur Khan airbase is in Rawalpindi, where the military has its headquarters, and is around 6 miles from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. In the aftermath of the strikes, Pakistan shut down its air space. The strike on Nur Khan caused mass panic in the densely populated area. Video from the scene shared on social media showed flames and smoke billowing into the night sky, with residents running into the streets. "There was a loud explosion which woke everyone up. It was so scary, everyone is still in a panic," said one resident living nearby.
↑Philip, Snehesh Alex (9 May 2025). "ISPR says main logistics hub in Rawalpindi among 3 Pakistan Air Force bases targeted by Indian missiles". ThePrint. Retrieved 12 May 2025. Explosions were reported in the early hours of Saturday from three Pakistan air bases including the military's primary logistics hub the Nur Khan base in Rawalpindi, hours after Pakistan launched a fresh wave of drones and loitering munitions targeting several Indian cities, and particularly the Sirsa air base of the Indian Air Force (IAF). Pakistan military's information wing the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) confirmed the explosions, blaming them on an Indian missile attack. ISPR DG in a late night statement said India has targeted the Pakistan Air Force's (PAF) Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi district), Murid (Chakwal) and Rafiqui (Shorkot, Jhang district) air bases.
12345"How India and Pakistan pulled back from the brink with US-brokered ceasefire". Reuters. Retrieved 13 May 2025. The barrage took out two roofs and hit the hangar of a refuelling plane, which was airborne at the time, according to one of the officials, who visited the base the next day. A senior Indian military officer, however, told reporters on Sunday that an operations command center at Nur Khan had been hit.
Hewish, Mark; Sweetman, Bill; Wheeler, Barry C.; Gunston, Bill (1984). Air Forces of the World (2ed.). London, UK: Peerage Books. ISBN978-0907408932.
Jefford, C.G. (2001). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912 (2nded.). Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN1-84037-141-2.
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