[5] The ACI was founded by businessman and hotelier Victor Sassoon as the Royal Aero Club of India and Burma Ltd. (RACIB) on 19 September 1927.

The club's primary objectives were to create awareness of air sports in the country, and to provide training to people seeking employment in commercial aviation.

RACIB subsequently established flying clubs in Karachi (in present-day Pakistan), Allahabad, Calcutta and Bombay.

[5] RACIB essentially operated as a branch of the Royal Aero Club of Great Britain until India's independence.

India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru served as the organization's first President, and Constituent Assembly member H.N.

The Rajiv Gandhi administration later allotted 30 acres of land near the Safdarjung Airport to the ACI for a period of 30 years at a concessional rate of ₹1 (equivalent to ₹15 or 17¢ US in 2023) per annum.

The petition was dismissed by the Court which observed that the facility was being used "more as a marriage/party venue than a flying club", and that "no injustice had been meted out" by evicting the plaintiff.