Eielson Air Force Base — Fairbanks, United States

EIL, Eielson Air Force Base, sits near Fairbanks, Alaska, and serves as a key installation for U.S. Air Force operations in the Arctic and Pacific theater. Home to F-35 fighter squadrons and various support units, Eielson plays a growing strategic role given renewed military interest in Arctic security amid climate-driven geopolitical shifts in the region. The base also hosts large-scale training exercises such as Red Flag-Alaska, drawing international military participants to practice combat scenarios in Arctic conditions. Eielson's extreme cold-weather environment tests aircraft and personnel resilience unlike most other U.S. bases. EIL is not open to civilian traffic, and its function centers entirely on national defense readiness in one of the harshest operational climates in the Air Force.