The Air Force wants a company to take over its aging chain of hotels at bases across the world, the latest move by the new administration to privatize and commercialize parts of the military.
Service-operated hotels at 58 military bases could be privatized, ideally handing the lodging off to a national hotel chain. The idea, which has been in the works for the past two years, could include a company signing a 50-year lease to update and run the lodging primarily used by troops and their families for travel and temporary-duty assignments, according to the service.
Military.com has reported on the struggles that Air Force inns have faced in recent years, including significant closures in 2022 due in part to being stripped of taxpayer funding in 2018. It also comes as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made it clear in a memo last month that he wants to privatize anything that is "not inherently governmental" within the military, including base exchanges, commissaries and even installation hotels.
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"A 2023 analysis by [Department of the Air Force] leadership determined that commercialization of DAF lodging offers the best path to sustainment," the Air Force said in a news release. "Over time, evolving funding priorities and the transition to a fully nonappropriated funds model have presented challenges for facility upkeep and improvements."
In addition to Hegseth, current U.S. ambassador to the United Nations nominee and former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said when he was a congressman that he wanted the military "out of the hotel management business."
The Department of the Air Force, which includes the Space Force, will start accepting requests for proposals this summer, with an initial look at having a hotel company taking over hotels at 23 installations.
The initial hotels targeted will be at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma; Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana; Beale Air Force Base, California; Buckley Space Force Base, Colorado; Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona; Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia; Edwards Air Force Base, California; Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas; Hurlburt Field, Florida; Joint Base Andrews, Maryland; Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina; Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska; Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey; Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas; MacDill Air Force Base, Florida; Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama; Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada; Robins Air Force Base, Georgia; Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina; Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina; Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas; and Travis Air Force Base, California.
"Quality lodging is critical for airmen, Guardians and their families," Robert Moriarty, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, said in the news release. "Whether for training, relocation or temporary duty assignments, ensuring reliable, well-maintained lodging is vital to readiness, mission success and resilience."
Benjamin Kindt, chief of the Commercial On-Base Lodging Program Management Office, said in the news release that the service is "focused on swiftly, yet effectively, selecting an industry leader as a lease applicant."
By summer 2026, the Department of the Air Force hopes to have a company selected and, by fall 2027, have the operation and lease transferred over to the new management.
The Army has already privatized many of its hotels. In 2009, the Army began privatizing the vast majority of its domestic lodging on bases -- Intercontinental Hotels Group manages and operates 41 locations, according to the Defense Travel Management Office website.
In October, the Air Force first announced its decision to pursue commercialization of its lodging, saying officials "took note of the successful Privatized Army Lodging (PAL) program" and that it resulted in "greatly improved guest satisfaction scores across the program."
Related: Hotels at Air Force Bases Across the Country Are Closing
