Piardoba Airfield

The airfield was a temporary forward base built for a specific military campaign. Its closure was a direct result of the end of World War II. The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) units stationed there were either inactivated or redeployed, rendering the base obsolete for its intended purpose. It was subsequently returned to the Government of India and was never converted for civilian use.

The site is currently abandoned and in a state of disrepair. The main runway and extensive network of taxiways, designed to accommodate B-29s, are still clearly visible from satellite imagery but are heavily weathered, cracked, and largely overgrown with vegetation and scrub. The land has been partially reclaimed for agricultural use by local villagers, and some of the paved surfaces are used as informal local roads. There are no permanent structures, facilities, or personnel on site. It is not an operational airport and is considered a historical relic of World War II.

Piardoba Airfield holds significant historical importance as a critical base for the Allied effort in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater during World War II. Its primary role was as a forward base for the American Twentieth Air Force's XX Bomber Command. It was one of four airfields in the Bengal region specifically constructed to host the then-new Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers. From mid-1944 to 1945, the airfield was home to the USAAF 468th Bombardment Group. The operations conducted from Piardoba were part of 'Operation Matterhorn,' the strategic bombing campaign against the Japanese Empire. B-29s flying from Piardoba conducted long-range bombing missions against industrial and military targets in Japan, Burma, Thailand, China, and Formosa (now Taiwan). The airfield was a vital component in the air war against Japan and represented a massive logistical and engineering effort. The ICAO code 'IN-0018' is a national identifier used within India for non-operational or historical airfields and is not an official ICAO airport code.

There are no active or funded plans to reopen Piardoba Airfield. Over the past decades, the Government of West Bengal has occasionally explored the possibility of reviving several of the state's WWII-era airfields for regional connectivity or to boost tourism. However, these plans have not materialized for Piardoba. The development and successful operation of the Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport (RDP) in Durgapur, which is relatively nearby, has fulfilled the modern air connectivity needs of the region. Given the dilapidated condition of the infrastructure, its remote location, and the presence of a modern regional airport, the prospects for reopening Piardoba for either commercial or regular military use are extremely low.