With a $176 million beddown cost, Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska was not the least expensive of the service's basing options for the first F-35A wing in the Pacific area of responsibility, an Air Force spokeswoman said this week, but its proximity to key training infrastructure made it the most strategic choice. The service announced its selection of Eielson AFB as the preferred alternative to host the first Pacific F-35As earlier this month, noting that the finalization of that...
