The service has rolled out free, high-speed Wi-Fi to its Airmen living in dormitories at 28 initial locations.
The Department of the Air Force is taking steps to comply with a congressional mandate to provide free internet to troops living in barracks.
The service has rolled out free, high-speed Wi-Fi to its Airmen living in unaccompanied housing at 28 initial locations.
The initial rollout includes the U.S. Air Force Academy and installations within Air Education and Training Command.
The service, provided through an Army & Air Force Exchange Service contract, is designed to deliver speeds of at least 100 megabits per second at no cost to Airmen.
Additional site deployments are already underway — the service plans to expand coverage to an additional 25% of its installations in fiscal 2027 and the remaining housing facilities in the following year, according to Stars and Stripes.
The 2025 defense policy bill requires the Defense Department to provide high-speed wireless internet access to all service members living in barracks.
The Marine Corps is the first service to meet that mandate — the service recently announced it rolled out free Wi-Fi to junior enlisted service members in every eligible barracks worldwide.
The Navy is also further long — free Wi-Fi is now available in 865 of the Navy’s 962 buildings. The remaining 10% of housing facilities are the most challenging locations to connect.
A Navy spokesperson told Federal News Network that the service is “working installation by installation to identify the infrastructure, contracting and regulatory steps needed to extend service wherever feasible.”
Sailors can also get subsidized high-speed upgrades — pricing and speeds vary by location and local commercial contracts. The Navy said about 84% of sailors are satisfied with the program.
Meanwhile, the Army’s rollout remains more limited — the service has brought free internet to approximately 1,400 soldiers living in 10 barracks at Fort Riley, as well as to soldiers living in select barracks at Fort Wainwright, Alaska. The Army is using a variety of providers to bring internet access to its troops.
Expanding access to Wi-Fi was among the quality-of-life priorities outlined in the Defense Department’s “Taking Care of Our People” initiatives, launched in 2024 by then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The Pentagon recognized that junior enlisted service members needed the internet to access mental health services, especially in places where behavioral health care access is limited, and other resources, whether it’s online training, military and family life counselors, or to connect with family and friends.
The following year, lawmakers authorized the Defense Department to provide free internet to troops living in dorms.
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