--- title: 'Army Bases in Alaska: A PCS Guide to Every Installation' slug: army-bases-in-alaska description: >- A plain guide to the Army bases in Alaska, from Fort Wainwright to Fort Greely and JBER, plus 2026 BAH, COLA and home prices. Start planning your PCS here. publishedAt: '2026-09-16T09:00:00.000Z' updatedAt: '2026-09-20T00:00:00.000Z' author: VeteranPCS categories: - U.S. Military Bases - PCS Help canonical: 'https://www.veteranpcs.com/blog/army-bases-in-alaska' componentSlug: us-military-bases stateSlug: alaska --- # Army Bases in Alaska: A PCS Guide to Every Installation If you just got orders north, take a breath. The army bases in Alaska are fewer and simpler than the map makes them look: two Army posts, one joint base shared with the Air Force, and a lot of training land in between where nobody lives. This guide walks through each installation, then covers the parts that decide your move: what you will be paid, what a home costs in Fairbanks and Anchorage, and how you get your family and your car up there. PCS stands for Permanent Change of Station, the military's term for a move to a new duty station. ## Every Army Installation in Alaska, at a Glance U.S. Army Garrison Alaska, or USAG Alaska, runs the Army's installations in the state from its headquarters at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks. It also supports Fort Greely near Delta Junction. The Army's third footprint is on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, which is led by the Air Force. | Installation | Where it is | What it does | | --- | --- | --- | | Fort Wainwright | Fairbanks | Main troop post; USAG Alaska headquarters | | Fort Greely | Near Delta Junction | Missile defense and extreme cold testing | | Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson | Anchorage | Air Force-led joint base; 11th Airborne Division headquarters | | Donnelly Training Area | Near Delta Junction | Largest maneuver and live-fire land in Alaska | | Tanana Flats Training Area | Near Fort Wainwright | Maneuver and aviation training land | | Yukon Training Area | Near Fort Wainwright | Maneuver and range training land | | Gerstle River Training Area | Southeast of Delta Junction | Specialized training site | | Black Rapids Training Area | South of Delta Junction | Northern Warfare Training Center | | Whistler Creek Training Area | Interior Alaska | Small USAG Alaska training parcel | ![Chart of U.S. Army installations and training areas in Alaska grouped by mission, showing Fort Wainwright, Fort Greely, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and the major training areas](/images/blog/army-bases-in-alaska/alaska-army-installations.png) *The Army's Alaska footprint, grouped by mission. Source: [U.S. Army Garrison Alaska](https://home.army.mil/wainwright/about).* ## What Each Post Does ### Fort Wainwright Fort Wainwright sits on the edge of Fairbanks in Alaska's interior. It is the home of USAG Alaska and the main Army troop post in the state. Units based there include the 1st Battalion, 52nd General Support Aviation Battalion, the 1-25th Attack Battalion, and Medical Department Activity-Alaska, which runs the hospital. The garrison calls it the home of America's Arctic Angels on its [about page](https://home.army.mil/wainwright/about). The 1st Brigade of the 11th Airborne Division, nicknamed the Arctic Wolves, is based here. If your orders name a line unit in the interior, this is where you are headed. See our [PCS to Fort Wainwright guide](/blog/pcs-to-fort-wainwright-fairbanks-2026-guide) for arrival details. ### Fort Greely Fort Greely sits outside the small town of Delta Junction, southeast of Fairbanks. It is small and it is serious. The garrison calls itself the coldest and windiest installation in the Army's Installation Management Command, with temperatures that have reached 55 degrees below zero. Its total population is about 1,644 people, and only 84 family homes sit on post, according to the [Fort Greely garrison page](https://home.army.mil/greely/about). The mission that keeps it open is homeland missile defense. Fort Greely hosts the Missile Defense Agency and the 49th Missile Defense Battalion, an Alaska Army National Guard unit. They operate part of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, built to intercept long-range ballistic missiles in space. Fire control runs through two nodes, one at Fort Greely and one in Colorado Springs, as the Missile Defense Agency explains on its [Ground-based Midcourse Defense page](https://www.mda.mil/system/gmd.html). Fort Greely also hosts the Arctic Regions Test Center, the Defense Department's only extreme cold weather test site. ### Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson JBER sits in Anchorage. It was created when Elmendorf Air Force Base and Fort Richardson combined under the 2005 base realignment law, reaching full joint operation on January 31, 2010. The Air Force leads it through the 673d Air Base Wing, so JBER is not an Army garrison the way Fort Wainwright is. The Army presence is still large. JBER is the headquarters of the 11th Airborne Division and home to its 2nd Brigade, the airborne "Spartans." The base also hosts the Air Force's 3rd Wing, Alaskan Command and 11th Air Force. Our [PCS to JBER guide](/blog/pcs-to-joint-base-elmendorf-richardson-anchorage-2026-guide) covers arrival, gates and first-week logistics. The division is new in name and old in history. The Army reflagged U.S. Army Alaska as the 11th Airborne Division on June 6, 2022, an outgrowth of its 2021 Arctic Strategy. See the Army's account of [re-activating the division](https://www.army.mil/article/257356/army_re_activates_historic_airborne_unit_reaffirms_commitment_to_arctic_strategy). For the other services in the state, see our overview of [what military bases are in Alaska](/blog/what-military-bases-are-in-alaska). ## The Training Areas USAG Alaska is divided into eight major areas, and most are training land rather than places people live. The scale is hard to picture from the Lower 48. Donnelly Training Area is the biggest: its western parcel alone covers roughly 571,995 acres, with another 51,590 acres on the eastern side. Tanana Flats runs more than 655,000 acres, and Yukon Training Area adds about 247,952 acres. Gerstle River is roughly 20,000 acres. Black Rapids is a much smaller 2,780-acre site about 35 miles south of Delta Junction, and it is home to the Northern Warfare Training Center, which teaches cold weather and mountain warfare. None of these is a place your family lives. But in a maneuver unit, you will sleep in most of them. ## What Housing Costs: BAH and COLA Basic Allowance for Housing, or BAH, is the monthly amount the military pays you toward off-post housing. It is set by rank, dependent status and the ZIP code of your duty station. Alaska's Army installations fall into two rate areas. Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely share the Fairbanks area, even though the posts are far apart. JBER sits in the Anchorage area, which pays more. Here are the 2026 rates for three common pay grades, from the official [DTMO BAH rate lookup](https://www.travel.dod.mil/Allowances/Basic-Allowance-for-Housing/BAH-Rate-Lookup/). | Pay grade | Fairbanks (AK405) with dependents | Fairbanks without | Anchorage (AK404) with dependents | Anchorage without | |---|---|---|---|---| | E-5 | $2,436 | $1,827 | $2,874 | $2,157 | | E-7 | $2,610 | $1,989 | $3,045 | $2,283 | | O-3 | $2,937 | $2,301 | $3,360 | $2,643 | ![Bar chart comparing 2026 Basic Allowance for Housing in the Fairbanks and Anchorage rate areas for E-5, E-7 and O-3 pay grades](/images/blog/army-bases-in-alaska/alaska-army-bah-2026.png) *2026 Basic Allowance for Housing for the Fairbanks and Anchorage rate areas. Source: DoD DTMO BAH rate lookup, rates effective January 1, 2026.* Rates reset every January. Check your own pay grade and ZIP code in the DTMO lookup before you sign anything, because these numbers will be out of date next year. ### The COLA piece Alaska duty stations also pay a Cost of Living Allowance, or COLA, on top of BAH. Because Alaska counts as outside the continental United States for pay purposes, service members there receive Overseas COLA, a non-taxable allowance meant to offset the higher price of non-housing things like groceries, gas and child care. It is not a fixed amount. The Defense Travel Management Office notes that it varies by location, rank, years of service and dependents, and is reviewed every year. DTMO also warns that COLA [should not be used for household budgeting](https://www.travel.dod.mil/Allowances/Overseas-Cost-of-Living-Allowance/): fixed bills like a car payment should be based on what you can afford without it. If you want a second set of eyes on the numbers, you can [talk with an Alaska agent who has done this move](https://www.veteranpcs.com/contact-agent?form=agent&fn=Bethany&id=001Rg00000EPRjK&state=alaska). There is no cost and no obligation. ## Renting, Buying, or Living On Post in Alaska You have the same three options you would have anywhere, but the tradeoffs are sharper this far north. ### On post Army family housing at Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely is privatized and run by North Haven Communities, which manages more than 2,500 homes across the two posts, per the [Fort Wainwright housing services page](https://home.army.mil/wainwright/alaska-newcomers/housing-services). At JBER it is run by Aurora Military Housing, and incoming families are asked to visit the housing office within two duty days of arrival. On post, you give up your BAH and your rent and most utilities are covered. Where winter heating bills are real money, that predictability is worth more than it would be at a southern post. ### Renting off post Off-post rentals give you more choice of neighborhood and school. Expect first month's rent plus a deposit, and ask directly how heat is paid for. In interior Alaska, a house with cheap rent and an expensive heating system is not a cheap house. Both housing offices keep referral lists, including short-term options for families waiting on household goods. ### Buying Fairbanks and Anchorage are two different markets. In August 2026, the median sale price in Fairbanks was $314,792, up 6.7 percent from a year earlier, with a median 50 days to sell, per [Redfin's Fairbanks market data](https://www.redfin.com/city/6233/AK/Fairbanks/housing-market). Anchorage ran higher and faster: $464,692 the same month, up 5.7 percent, with a median 9 days on market, per [Redfin's Anchorage market data](https://www.redfin.com/city/781/AK/Anchorage/housing-market). Those are median sale prices, not typical home values, and they move month to month. Before you run the math, read our walkthrough on [how much house you can afford on BAH](/blog/how-much-house-can-you-afford-on-bah). Veterans who buy should also check the [Alaska veteran property tax exemptions](/blog/alaska-veteran-property-tax-exemptions-2026). ## What Makes an Alaska PCS Different ### The calendar Alaska's PCS season is short. Most families want to land in summer, when the roads are clear and the days are long, and that is exactly when everyone else is moving. Book your movers early. If your report date lands in the dark half of the year, our [winter PCS move guide](/blog/winter-pcs-move-guide) covers packing, driving and timing when the weather is against you. ### Your vehicle You generally have an entitlement to ship one privately owned vehicle at government expense on PCS orders, and Alaska is one of the few destinations where driving is also an option. If you drive, the government reimburses you through a mileage allowance and per diem rather than paying for the trip directly. Driving the Alaska Highway is a real road trip through Canada, with border requirements for you, your passengers and any pets. Shipping takes longer to arrange but removes the winter-driving risk. Start at [Move.mil's entitlements page](https://move.mil/entitlements), then call your transportation office. The right answer depends on your orders, your timeline and how many cars you own. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How many Army bases are in Alaska? Two garrison installations, Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely, plus a large Army presence on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Counting the training land USAG Alaska manages, the footprint covers eight major areas. ### Is Fort Richardson still an Army base? Not under that name. Fort Richardson combined with Elmendorf Air Force Base to become JBER, which reached full joint operation on January 31, 2010. The Air Force leads the base, but the Army side is very much active. It is where the 11th Airborne Division is headquartered. ### Where is the 11th Airborne Division based? The division headquarters is at JBER in Anchorage. Its 1st Brigade is at Fort Wainwright and its 2nd Brigade is at JBER. It was created in June 2022 by reflagging U.S. Army Alaska. ### Which Army base in Alaska is the coldest? Fort Greely, by its own account. The garrison describes itself as the coldest and windiest installation in Installation Management Command, with recorded lows around 55 below zero. ### Do you get extra pay for being stationed in Alaska? Yes. Alaska duty stations pay a non-taxable Overseas Cost of Living Allowance on top of BAH. The amount depends on your location, rank, years of service and dependents, and it is adjusted every year. Look up your own rate rather than trusting a number a friend quotes. *This content is for informational purposes. Consult a professional for personal financial decisions.*