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Arnold AFB access requires CAC ID for active duty military, retiree and dependents. There are certain buildings that require a special security badge.
All firearms must be registered on base. For additional information on registering firearms contact Security Forces at 931-454-5662 or 312-340-5662.
Passports and Visas
Passports and Visas are not required for this installation.
Defense Service Network (DSN) Dialing Instructions
The DSN is the provider of long-distance communications service for the Department of Defense (DoD). Every installation has a special DSN number and the numbers vary by world-wide location. In order to place a call using DSN, the caller must be using a military phone on an installation. Cell phones cannot dial DSN numbers. When dialing a DSN number from a United States installation to another United States installation, it is unnecessary to dial the DSN 312 area code. When dialing a DSN number to/from overseas locations, the DSN area code must be included.
The Area Code for Arnold Air Force Base is 931 (931-XXX-XXXX)The DSN prefix for Arnold Air Force Base is 340 (340-XXXX)
To call Arnold AFB from overseas: 312-340-XXXX (operator 340-3000)To do "off-net calls" (Morale Calls) you must call the operator as listed above. All other "morale call numbers" are now disconnected. Please share this information with those who have "morale call listings".
Emergency Fire/Police/Ambulance 911 on base telephone system931-454-3117 from base housing or cell phone
Our Mission: To prove the superiority of systems required to meet the demands of the National Defense Strategy.
Once one of the Army’s largest training bases during World War II, Arnold Air Force base evolved from Camp Forrest, named after Civil War cavalryman General Nathan Bedford Forrest. The camp was a multi-functional military facility, serving as a training base for infantry, artillery, engineer, and signal organizations as well as a hospital center and POW camp.
In 1949, shortly before the war ended, Congress authorized $100 million for the construction of what would become the Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC). General Henry “HAP” Arnold asked Dr. Theodore von Karman, one of history’s greatest aeronautical scientists, to study Germany’s rapid development of advanced jet aircraft and other systems which almost allowed the then Nazi-dominated nation to win WWII. Dr. Von Karman then formed a Scientific Advisory Group to chart a long-range research and development course for the future of the U.S. Air Force. The 1950s saw the development of three major test facilities that remain active today - the Engine Test Facility, the von Karman Gas Dynamics Facility and the Propulsion Wind Tunnel Test Facility. The latter was a key player in supporting Project Gemini, and the center played a multi-faceted role in supporting the Apollo Program, which put man on the moon. Apollo tests included aerodynamic assessments of the Apollo capsule and tests of Saturn 5 rocket upper stage engines.
The Arnold Engineering Development Complex is an Air Force Materiel Command facility and an important national resource. The center operates 68 aerodynamic and propulsion wind tunnels, rocket motor and turbine engine test cells, space environmental chambers, arc heaters, ballistic ranges and other specialized units. More than 13 of the center's units have capabilities unmatched anywhere else in the world. The test facilities can simulate flight conditions from sea level to level to space and from subsonic speeds to well over mach 20. Additional information is available at the installation homepage at https://www.arnold.af.mil/.
Arnold AFB employed a mixture of military personnel from the Air Force, Department of Defense civilians and contractors totaling 2,813 personnel in fiscal year 2024, which ran from Oct. 1, 2023, to Sept. 30, 2024. Of these personnel, 48 were active-duty military; nine Air Force Reserve and National Guard; 416 appropriated fund civilian employees, which includes commissary tenants, general schedule and other military branches; 16 government non-appropriated fund employees; and 2,324 contractor and subcontractor employees.
Arnold Air Force Base, home of the Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), is located in middle Tennessee nearly equal distance between Nashville and Chattanooga.
Arnold AFB is the perfect place to work and play. Scenic beauty surrounds a tremendous quality of life for residents. Nearby cities Manchester, Tullahoma and Winchester form a triangle around AEDC, which straddles Coffee and Franklin counties in Tennessee. The area rests on the Highland Rim, a natural division of the state with an average elevation of more than 1,000 feet above sea level. A moderate climate averages 80 degrees in the summer and 40 degrees in winter. There's an average rainfall of 54 inches and snowfall of 5.7 inches. Spring blooms and fall flourishes with color.
Currently, there is no base transportation available on this installation.