The Air Force School (Subroto Park)

The Air Force School (Subroto Park) (TAFS), originally called The Air Force Central School (AFCS) was set up to provide education primarily to the children of the Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel.

The school is an unaided private co-educational institute affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). It has boarding facilities for boys of classes VI to XII. It has classes from Kindergarten to Class XII. The school is situated on the Aravali ridge - amidst picturesque surroundings - lined by rows of majestic Eucalyptus and Ashoka trees.

In the 15 acre area of the school, there are numerous varieties of Bougainvillea, ranging from the common Pink to the rare lovely Mary Palmer which blossom throughout the year. Although the school was established primarily for the benefit of children belonging to the IAF personnel, it has always been open to wards of Army and Navy personnel as well as to civilians.

Foundation
The Air Force School (TAFS)' was founded by the late Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee, the Chief of Air Staff. It was established in temporary wartime barracks at Wellingdon Camp, Club Road, New Delhi on 18 July 1955 to educate children of Officers and Airmen of the Indian Air Force. In May 1967, the school shifted to its present location Aravalli Campus location in Subroto Park, Delhi Cantonment. Earlier the school was located in New Delhi near the present residence of the Prime Minister of India. The school celebrated its Silver Jubilee in 1980 when the word "Central" was dropped from the name.

The school, and its sister schools, Air Force Bal Bharati School (AFBBS) and the Air Force Golden Jubilee Institute (AFGJI) are run by the Indian Air Force Educational and Cultural Society.

Management
The Managing Committee of the school is headed by the Joint Director of Education of the Directorate of Education, Air Headquarters (R.K. Puram) New Delhi. The Committee consists of some officers of the Indian Air Force and two elected representatives of the teaching staff; one elected representative of the parents, two nominated members each of the Directorate of Education, Delhi Administration and of the Education Advisory Board, Delhi Administration. The Board of Governors, presided over by the Air Officer in charge of Administration, Air Headquarters is the body for all the schools run by the IAF Education Society. The Vice Principal looks after the academics, assisted by the Headmistress of the Junior Wing and the Head of the Department of each faculty. The Administrative Officer cum Bursar and the Accountant, look after the accounts, administration and management.

Affiliations
The Air Force School is a co-educational public school. The school is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education and students are prepared for the All India Secondary School Examination (Class X) and the All India Senior School Certificate Examination (Class XII). The School is a member of the Indian Public Schools' Conference (IPSC) and also of National Progressive Schools' Conference (NPSC).

Notable alumni

 * Anoop Malhotra Lt. General
 * Ashok Malhotra (professor) Educationist
 * Nikesh Arora, Senior Vice President and Chief Business Officer, Google.
 * Pawanexh Kohli (Chief Advisor, National Centre for Cold-chain Development, GOI)
 * Rakesh Sharma, Movie Director, Film maker.
 * Rini Simon Khanna, news anchor
 * Siddharth Chatterjee (Chief Diplomat, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
 * Joyeeta Gupta (Professor and Vice Chair of Global Change Commission)
 * Shiv Murari Sahai (Inspector General Police, J&K)
 * Kishore Bhargava, technology Gadget Guru (NDTV)

Programmes
The school has four main streams at +2 level - Humanities, Commerce, Science (Medical) and Science (Non-medical). Besides English, subjects offered are:
 * Humanities: Mathematics, Economics, History, Geography, English Elective, Hindi Elective, Political Science, Home Science, Physical Education, Information Technology.
 * Commerce: Commerce, Accountancy, Business Studies, Economics, Mathematics Geography, Physical Education, Information Technology.
 * Science (Medical): Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Physical Education.
 * Science (Non-medical): Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering Drawing, Computer Science, Economics

The school site, known as Aravali campus, is situated at the Aravali Ridge amidst picturesque surroundings lined by rows of eucalyptus and ashoka trees. The 15 acre (six hectare) campus includes instructional blocks, laboratories and an SUPW activities complex; a music division, staff quarters and a boarding house. The school sickbay functions under the supervision of a Resident Medical Officer and a Resident Medical Assistant. The medical staff, besides providing medical assistance to the students, conduct annual medical check ups.

The school conducts classes in activities under Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) : music - instrumental and vocal, dance, painting, sculpture, wood work, electronics and journalism. The school has societies and clubs with a teacher in-charge for each. These include Wild Life and Nature Club, Photography, Science, and Music. In the Home Science department boys are trained in household activities and House Maintenance, Home Economics and Nutrition.

Adjoining the school campus there are play fields for hockey, cricket, football and a 400 m track. The Sports Authority of India has started coaching in football, hockey and basketball for students. Students take part in mountaineering, rock climbing, trekking and adventure camps at hill stations and mountaineering institutes.

Other Air Force schools in India

 * Air Force School Coimbatore
 * Air Force Bal Bharati School, Lodi Road
 * Air Force Golden Jubilee Institute
 * Air Force School Kanpur
 * Air Force School Pathankot
 * Air Force School Gwalior
 * Air Force School Avadi, Chennai
 * Air Force School ASTE, Bangalore