Where Will the F-47 Be Based? Nellis and the Secret First Base

The Air Force has named one base that will host the F-47: Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, where the aircraft will be tested by operational crews. Beyond that, the service has said very little. Aviation Week reported in August 2026 that a first operating base had been selected, and that the Air Force would not say where. No squadron, wing or overseas location has been announced.

This article sets out what is on the record, which bases are logical candidates and why, and how the basing process works. Where we are inferring from the F-22’s footprint, we say so.

What is on the record

On 2 February 2026 the US Army Corps of Engineers published a market research notice for F-47 facilities at Nellis. It describes construction between 2026 and 2033, in three phases, with a possible contract value of between $10 million and $500 million.

The first phase covers new apron space, a maintenance hangar, a squadron operations building, a flight simulator facility, an avionics laboratory and communications equipment. The second adds a corrosion control facility, which matters for the upkeep of stealth coatings, along with fuel and weapons storage. The third is a dormitory for up to 240 people.

The second public fact concerns the first operating base. The Air Force has awarded an environmental study contract for F-47 basing, reported at nearly $1.9 million over two years, and has declined to identify the location being studied. Aviation Week reported on 10 August 2026 that the base had been chosen and was being kept secret.

Testing comes first: Edwards and Nellis

New Air Force fighters go through two kinds of testing. Developmental testing checks that the aircraft meets its specification. It has traditionally been done at Edwards Air Force Base in California, and reporting on the Nellis notice expects the first F-47s to go there in small numbers. The Air Force has not formally confirmed that.

Operational testing asks a different question: can front-line crews fight with it? That work belongs to the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron at Nellis, which has carried out operational testing of new Air Force fighters since 1969. Nellis is also home to the Weapons School and the Red Flag exercises, so tactics for the F-47 will be written there.

The timing fits the flight schedule. The Air Force plans a first flight in 2028, and the Nellis buildings are due to be ready in stages over the following years.

Which bases are logical candidates

The Air Force has not published a candidate list. The F-47 is replacing the F-22, though, so the bases that fly the Raptor today are the natural starting point. What follows is inference from that footprint, not reporting.

Existing F-22 bases already have secure hangars, low-observable maintenance facilities and trained people. Reusing them is cheaper than starting again, and it is how the F-22 itself replaced the F-15 at Langley and Elmendorf. Whether the F-47 will replace the F-22 one for one is a separate question.

The Pacific question

The F-47 was designed with the Pacific in mind. Its combat radius above 1,000 nautical miles is meant to let it reach contested airspace from bases farther back, out of range of the most numerous Chinese missiles.

That makes locations such as Alaska, Hawaii and Guam more useful than they were for the shorter-ranged F-22. It may also reduce the need to keep aircraft permanently in Japan, where Kadena Air Base on Okinawa sits close to the Chinese coast. The Air Force has rotated fighters through Kadena since retiring its F-15C squadrons there.

Nothing has been announced about overseas basing. Permanent basing abroad also needs the agreement of the host government. The more likely pattern, at least at first, is aircraft based in the United States that deploy forward for periods and disperse to smaller airfields in a crisis.

How the decision is made, and when

Basing follows a set process. The Air Force defines its criteria, such as airspace, runway length, weather, existing facilities and cost. It scores candidate bases, names a preferred location and reasonable alternatives, and completes an environmental impact statement before signing a final decision.

The B-21 bomber shows the timescale. Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota was named the preferred first base in 2019, its environmental study was finished in June 2021, and aircraft are expected there later this decade. That is a gap of roughly seven years or more from announcement to arrival.

For the F-47 the environmental study is under way and is due to take about two years. A public announcement would normally follow. With operational aircraft not expected before the end of the decade, the Air Force has time, and for now it has chosen secrecy.

Frequently asked questions

Where will the F-47 be based?

Only Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada has been confirmed, for testing. The first operating base has reportedly been chosen but not named.

Will the F-47 be based at Langley?

It has not been announced. Langley is the largest F-22 base, which makes it a logical candidate, but that is inference.

Will the F-47 be based in Japan or Guam?

Nothing has been announced about overseas basing. The aircraft’s long range is intended to let it operate from bases farther from China.

Where will the F-47 be tested?

Operational testing will be at Nellis with the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron. Early flight testing is expected at Edwards Air Force Base.

When will the first base be announced?

There is no date. An environmental study lasting about two years is under way, and an announcement would normally follow it.

How many bases will the F-47 have?

Unknown. That depends on how many aircraft are bought. The Air Force has spoken of at least 185.