Kalaikunda Air Force Station is an Indian Air Force base located in Kharagpur, West Bengal. It was built by the British for the Royal Indian Air Force during World War II, initially designed for B-24 Liberator use. In 1943, it was designated as a B-29 Superfortress Base for the United States Army Air Forces XX Bomber Command, serving as one of four such bases in India. The 58th Bombardment Wing and the 468th Bombardment Group were stationed here, conducting operations against Japanese targets in Asia. After the B-29s departed, the Tenth Air Force 2d Air Commando Group used the airfield for supply drops, troop transport, and fighter support in Burma. Post-independence, by 1956, Kalaikunda became a major operational hub for the Indian Air Force, housing squadrons flying aircraft such as the Mystère IV and Hawker Hunter. It played a frontline role during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars. Currently, the base is operated by the Eastern Air Command and Andaman and Nicobar Command. It is home to a squadron of Su-30 MKIs, and previously housed No. 18 Squadron IAF, which flew the Mikoyan MiG-27 ML until 2016. The base also regularly hosts MiG-27 ground-attack aircraft and MiG-21 Fn fighters. Kalaikunda serves as a location for international air exercises, including training agreements with the Republic of Singapore Air Force. The base has a radar station at Salua and an air-to-ground firing range at Dudhkundi. The Indian Air Force has agreed to allow civil aircraft to use its runway, with a civilian terminal planned for operations by Alliance Air for flights to Vishakapatnam and Bhubaneshwar.