KINGSLEY FIELD, Ore.– Kingsley Field is ready to enter a new era of fighter pilot training following the official decision to base 26 F-35A Lightning II aircraft at Kingsley Field, strengthening the Air Force’s capacity to produce combat ready pilots for the next generation of airpower.
“This a historic day for the 173rd Fighter Wing, and the Klamath Basin,” said Col. Adam Gaudinski, 173rd Fighter Wing commander. “Twenty-six F-35s will call Kingsley Field home, and with them comes a mission of national importance. From Southern Oregon, we will produce the next generation of F-35 pilots who will carry America’s fifth-generation airpower into combat and defend our nation for years to come.”
The F-35A is the Air Force’s conventional takeoff and landing variant of the Joint Strike Fighter. Its combination of stealth, advanced sensors, networking and weapons capabilities is designed to provide aircrews and commanders with enhanced awareness and combat capability in contested environments.
As the Air Force transitions from fourth-generation F-15s to fifth-generation F-35s, the ability to train and develop qualified F-35 pilots remains essential to maintaining operational capacity.
Kingsley Field’s F-35 mission will position the 173rd Fighter Wing to contribute directly to that requirement by training pilots who will then take their F-35 experience to operational units throughout the Air Force.
“We are not simply receiving a new aircraft; we are taking on a mission that directly affects the Air Force’s ability to put combat-ready F-35 pilots into operational units,” said Gaudinski. “Every pilot we graduate from Kingsley represents combat capability that can be delivered to an operational squadron. That is the responsibility we are accepting, and we are ready for it.”
The transition will require substantial changes to Kingsley Field’s infrastructure, maintenance operations and training enterprise. Construction and modernization efforts will support the F-35 fleet and the personnel responsible for operating and maintaining the aircraft.
The effort will generate economic activity throughout Southern Oregon as construction projects and the transition brings additional personnel, equipment, parts and resources to the installation.
“This decision is an investment in more than an airfield,” said Gaudinski. “It is an investment in the people, infrastructure and industrial capacity that will support fifth-generation airpower for decades. The Klamath Basin has stood with Kingsley Field for generations, and now we have an opportunity to build something that will serve both our community and our nation well into the future.”
For the 173rd Fighter Wing, the transition represents more than the replacement of one fighter aircraft with another. It changes the way the wing trains pilots, maintains aircraft and prepares Airmen for future combat operations.
The F-15C Eagle has been a defining part of Kingsley Field’s mission for decades. The F-35A will carry the installation’s fighter pilot training mission into a new generation of air combat.
“The Eagle built a legacy here that we will always be proud of,” said Gaudinski. “But our mission has never been about a particular aircraft. Our mission is to develop Airmen and fighter pilots who can deliver airpower when the nation needs it. The F-35 gives us the capability to continue that mission against the threats of tomorrow.”
The changeover will occur over multiple years, with initial aircraft arrival in Summer 2027, as Kingsley Field prepares facilities, personnel and training programs for the F-35A. During that period, Airmen will continue supporting the wing’s existing mission while building the capabilities required for the future fleet.
For Gaudinski, the transition represents a continuation of Kingsley Field’s longstanding role in fighter pilot development.
“Kingsley Field has spent decades building fighter pilots for the nation,” said Gaudinski. “That standard does not change with the F-35. What changes is the capability we put in their hands and the complexity of the environment in which they will operate. We are ready to meet that challenge.”
The official basing decision positions Kingsley Field to become part of the next generation of F-35 pilot production, providing trained aviators to operational units while supporting the Air Force’s broader fifth-generation fighter mission.
“America’s Air Supremacy starts here,” said Gaudinski.
