Fairchild Air Force Base

Fairchild Air Force Base at a glance

Fairchild Air Force Base is an air refueling and training installation west of Spokane, Washington. The 92nd Air Refueling Wing operates within Air Mobility Command, supporting the movement and reach of other aircraft through aerial refueling. The installation also hosts the Air Force Survival School, whose instruction is associated with survival, evasion, resistance and escape training. These missions combine mobility aviation with a specialized training function.

The base opened in 1942 as the Spokane Army Air Depot. After the war it became Spokane Air Force Base and was renamed in 1951 for General Muir Fairchild, a Washington native. Its transition to the 92nd Air Refueling Wing in 1994 established the modern tanker-focused identity described in the installation's official overview.

Also searched as: Fairchild AFB.

Sources: Fairchild Air Force Base overview: MilitaryINSTALLATIONS; U.S. Air Force Survival School: Fairchild Air Force Base

Mission and major activities

• Air refueling through the 92nd Air Refueling Wing.
• Survival, evasion, resistance and escape instruction through the Air Force Survival School.

Sources: Fairchild Air Force Base overview: MilitaryINSTALLATIONS; U.S. Air Force Survival School: Fairchild Air Force Base

Location and community

Fairchild is in eastern Washington's Spokane County, near Airway Heights, Medical Lake and Cheney. Spokane is the principal nearby city.

Sources: Fairchild Air Force Base overview: MilitaryINSTALLATIONS

Air refueling and survival education share Fairchild

Fairchild’s air-refueling identity centers on the 92d Air Refueling Wing and KC-135 tanker work. Its official history also identifies survival training as a distinct part of the installation. An operational tanker assignment, an instructor posting and a temporary training course are different reasons to arrive at the same base, with different receiving organizations and accommodation needs.

Established in 1942 as Spokane Army Depot, Fairchild moved through repair and supply, bomber and strategic missions before its 1994 transition to an air-refueling-wing identity under Air Mobility Command. The base is west of Spokane in eastern Washington. Airway Heights, Medical Lake and Cheney are among the nearby communities. Those locations provide a more useful starting point for comparing homes than assuming every Spokane-area address offers the same journey to work or training.

Official sources: Fairchild overview; Fairchild official history

School destinations extend beyond the installation

Balfour Beatty Communities manages Fairchild’s privatized family housing, and the Military Housing Office provides official application and community-housing guidance. The housing page describes a community center, walking trails and playgrounds. Availability and the details of an offered home should be established with the manager before coordinating household-goods delivery.

For families, the school list makes a practical distinction: Michael Anderson Elementary is on Fairchild, while middle and high school destinations listed are in Medical Lake. Confirm current school assignments and transportation arrangements for the child’s grade and actual address. The existence of an on-base elementary school should not lead a family to assume that every school-age child studies on the installation. A community residence may also change the assigned school, so make the home and education decisions together.

Official sources: Fairchild housing

Primary care is separate from emergency and urgent care

The 92d Medical Group provides family health, pediatrics, women’s health, optometry and supporting clinical services. The official health-care guide states that the medical group has neither an emergency room nor urgent care, and directs patients to community facilities for those needs. It also distinguishes services limited to active-duty members from broader beneficiary care.

Establish the receiving primary-care relationship and review the current process for specialist or urgent-care referrals with the medical team. For an arriving family, routine dental care also needs separate planning rather than assuming the active-duty dental clinic provides the household’s ongoing care. A training student should use course and medical instructions appropriate to that temporary status; a permanent-party family should plan continuity of treatment across the relocation.

Official sources: Fairchild health care

Published addresses and access

Use the destination label below to distinguish visitor access, a service office and postal mail. A published address does not authorize entry. Confirm current access, sponsorship, appointments and reporting instructions with the official office before travelling.

Before you arrive

Use these questions with your sponsor or gaining organization. They are a starting point for planning, including assignments, courses and training periods that differ from a routine permanent change of station.

1. Confirm the organization, duration and reporting instructions shown on your orders. Ask which office handles your arrival.
2. Clarify lodging and housing arrangements before booking. Ask about availability, required approvals and how to handle a late arrival.
3. Before choosing a home, compare the commute, lease terms, school needs and your household budget. Ask the housing office about the options that apply to your situation.
4. Coordinate household goods and personal travel with the appropriate transportation office. Keep orders, receipts and important family records together.
5. Make a short list of contacts for medical care, schools, childcare and family support, where applicable to your assignment.

Official PCS planning resources   Housing allowance information

Sources: Fairchild Air Force Base overview: MilitaryINSTALLATIONS; U.S. Air Force Survival School: Fairchild Air Force Base

Resources for service members and families

Start with the official resources for Fairchild Air Force Base and ask which services your household can use. For a training site, rotational location or Reserve component assignment, confirm arrangements with your unit rather than assuming the services of a large residential installation are available.

From this mission to your next career

The mission at Fairchild Air Force Base suggests the following areas to consider when describing your experience. These are LockLeed career suggestions based on the public mission, not a list of vacancies or qualifications held by everyone assigned here.

Write down the equipment, systems, processes and teams you personally supported. Add a specific result you can discuss publicly, then match that evidence to the civilian role you want. Keep operational details and sensitive information out of your application.

Official transition resources   Explore SkillBridge programs

Official contacts and installation services

Use the named official resource for this installation or its support community. A directory link does not establish service eligibility, availability or a reporting location. Confirm arrangements with the office or your gaining organization.

Research note: Air Force housing and installation history were reviewed through official indexed content.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and editorial notes

Installation facts above are drawn from the official sources below. Career suggestions and planning questions are LockLeed editorial guidance. Use official offices for current policies, eligibility and arrangements.

1. Fairchild Air Force Base overview: MilitaryINSTALLATIONSSupports: overview, mission, local context, planning note
2. U.S. Air Force Survival School: Fairchild Air Force BaseSupports: overview, mission, planning note
3. Fairchild official historySupports: expanded guide and official services
4. Fairchild housingSupports: expanded guide and official services
5. Fairchild health careSupports: expanded guide and official services

Reviewed 2026-09-30. This independent guide is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Defense. Map points are approximate and are not routing or reporting instructions.