BMt next
Forging the Force the Future Demands
From the Drill Pad to the AirfielD
Air Force Basic Military Training is where the journey to being an airminded warrior begins. BMT Next integrates Airpower sooner. For more than a century, airpower has shaped the outcome of conflict. But airpower does not exist on its own. It is defended, operated, generated, and sustained by Airmen.
BMT Next brings air‑mindedness into the earliest moments of training with new air base training ranges and a ground-up curriculum that will forge Airmen for the future.
The future of bmt starts here
Maj. Gen. Wolfe Davidson and Chief Master Sgt. Colin Fleck outline how BMT is changing to meet future operational needs. New air base training ranges give trainees early exposure to airfield operations, air base defense, and mission generation, helping them understand how their actions support the Air Force mission.
BMT Next builds air‑mindedness earlier in training and develops adaptable Airmen who understand the purpose behind their training from day one.
The Airbase is the classroom
At the core of BMT Next is a new training environment at Joint Base San Antonio: Air Base Training Ranges designed to bring airpower to life.
These ranges allow trainees to progress from foundational, part‑task training to event‑based challenges that introduce calculated stress and consequence.
Every action matters, and every role connects to the mission.
As training intensifies, flights operate as disciplined small teams—defending, operating, generating, and sustaining airpower together.
If the airbase is one of the most lethal weapons ever created, Airmen must experience its complexity and responsibility early in their journey.
Here, accountability is learned through action, not explanation.
The Airbase in Action
These virtual 3D models showcase the new training environments that make BMT Next possible.
The Air Base Training Range (ATR), which will be located near the Valley Hi gate at Lackland AFB introduces trainees to early, hands‑on air‑minded tasks—entry control, fueling, loading, and airfield operations, long before they reach their first duty station.
The Forward Air Base Training Range, built at the current PACER FORGE site at the Chapman Training Annex, will allow for an Airpower generation centric culminating event for BMT where trainees operate a simulated forward air base and experience airpower at work. It builds on the previous week' foundation with full‑mission scenarios that simulate deployed operations. Here, trainees learn to defend, operate, generate, and sustain airpower as small, disciplined teams.
Together, these environments allow BMT Next to develop the tactical awareness, teamwork, and decision‑making required of tomorrow’s Airmen, long before they reach their first duty station.
