In the current era of Covid-19, we have seen substantial changes and adjustments in every branch of the military to how they are dealing with graduation ceremonies.
While this year’s ceremonies will look different and face limitations, you can still support your trainee in many ways.
Every individual puts in hard work and dedication every day at training, and they deserve to be rewarded accordingly.
Air Force Basic Training Graduation Dates
Here is a list of the currently provided dates of graduation for the Air Force Basic Training school with their associated basic training start date.
| Basic Training Start Date | Basic Training Graduation |
|---|---|
| March 21, 2023 | May 11, 2023 |
| March 28, 2023 | May 18, 2023 |
| April 4, 2023 | May 25, 2023 |
| April 11, 2023 | June 1, 2023 |
| April 18, 2023 | June 8, 2023 |
| April 25, 2023 | June 15, 2023 |
| May 2, 2023 | June 22, 2023 |
| May 9, 2023 | June 29, 2023 |
| May 16, 2023 | July 6, 2023 |
| May 23, 2023 | July 13, 2023 |
| May 30, 2023 | July 20, 2023 |
| June 6, 2023 | July 27, 2023 |
| June 13, 2023 | August 3, 2023 |
| June 20, 2023 | August 10, 2023 |
| June 27, 2023 | August 17, 2023 |
| July 4, 2023 | August 24, 2023 |
| July 11, 2023 | August 31, 2023 |
| July 18, 2023 | September 7, 2023 |
| July 25, 2023 | September 14, 2023 |
| August 1, 2023 | September 21, 2023 |
| August 8, 2023 | September 28, 2023 |
| August 15, 2023 | October 5, 2023 |
| August 22, 2023 | October 12, 2023 |
| August 29, 2023 | October 19, 2023 |
| September 5, 2023 | October 26, 2023 |
| September 12, 2023 | November 2, 2023 |
| September 19, 2023 | November 9, 2023 |
| September 26, 2023 | November 16, 2023 |
| October 3, 2023 | November 23, 2023 |
| October 10, 2023 | November 30, 2023 |
| October 17, 2023 | December 7, 2023 |
| October 24, 2023 | December 14, 2023 |
| October 31, 2023 | December 21, 2023 |
| November 7, 2023 | December 28, 2023 |
| November 14, 2023 | January 4, 2024 |
| November 21, 2023 | January 11, 2024 |
| November 28, 2023 | January 18, 2024 |
| December 5, 2023 | January 25, 2024 |
| December 12, 2023 | February 1, 2024 |
| December 19, 2023 | February 8, 2024 |
| December 26, 2023 | February 15, 2024 |
Important Notes (April 2022)
According to a bulletin released on April 8, 2022, beginning with the April 14th, 2022 BMT graduation, visitors will no longer be required to show proof of COVID vaccination to attend.
Here are some more important conditions for your review:
- Any individual with installation access may attend the ceremony.
- Guests who do not already have access to the installation must be invited by their trainee and vetted to receive an installation pass. Trainees can invite six guests who require installation access.
- Those under the age of 18 may accompany parents/guardians and are not required to have a separate installation access pass.
BMT graduations opened up to a limited number of visitors in July 2021, and the Airman’s Run returned in Nov. 2021.
BMT Graduation Gift Idea
If you’re looking for a great gift idea for your newly graduating Airman / Airwoman, check out the GoPro HERO11 black.
The GoPro HERO11 Black camera is a slick, high-quality camera used the world over.
Its unshakable design and built-in stabilization and mounting allow you to take videos that are simply awesome.
Air Force airmen and women love to take videos of themselves doing the jobs they love, sharing them with the ones they love.
Check out a couple of examples of the GoPro HERO11 in action below:
Fighter Pilot and In-flight Refueler BS About Coffee
Air Force K9 Handler Talks About The Job
Fighter Pilot Shows You What Happens If You Go Upside Down
Click Here to pick up the GoPro HERO11 camera today.
Or click here to see a list of other great BMT graduation gift ideas.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Where is Air Force Basic Training Graduation?
Air Force Basic Training Graduation would be held at JBSA Lackland located in the City of San Antonio, Texas.
This base is in an easy-to-reach location that can be driven to from the San Antonio Airport in just about 20 minutes.
Guests arriving by rideshares or taxi should be dropped off at the Luke East visitor center parking lot.
To get into the actual graduation area, you will need to enter through either the Valley Hi gate, Luke East, or the Selfridge West Gate.
Here’s a map and directions for each:
Valley Hi Gate
Address for Valley Hi Gate – 1033 Truemper St., Lackland Air Force Base
Luke East Gate
Address for Luke East Gate – 2196 Luke Blvd., Lackland Air Force Base
Selfridge West Gate
Driving directions to Selfridge Blvd West gate: www.Waze.com
The many signs and waypoints near the base should make it easy enough to find where you need to go with the assistance of a GPS.
How has Covid-19 affected Air Force boot camp graduation?
In nearly every way, COVID-19 has had a direct effect on the way that Air Force trainees are going about their training and how they will graduate.
While the situation is constantly changing and evolving, there have been many measures taken over the past years to ensure the safety of everyone on and off of the base.
Starting with basic training, the overall time spent for new recruits in basic training has been reduced from the standard 8 weeks down to 7.5 weeks.
Trainees and staff are required to socially distance and wear masks when possible.
This precaution to ensure the efficient and safe training of the next generation of Air Force members means that all graduation ceremonies are being conducted with safe distancing protocols.
For the most recent information on graduation, visit the Air Force’s site.
It may also be a good idea to check in with your trainee to see if they have been given more specific information to relay to friends and family members.
Related Article – What To Bring To Air Force BMT
What day of the week / time of the day is Air Force basic training graduation?
Unlike some other branches where the graduation event is just one day, the Air Force Graduation ceremony lasts two days.
During this exciting time, friends and family members are exposed to a wide array of traditions and experiences that will expose them to what the Air Force is all about.
Under normal circumstances, graduation kicks off on a Wednesday morning with events taking place every day through Thursday to make sure there is enough time to experience the entire event.
The main graduation parade takes place on Thursday, but many ceremonies like the Airman’s Coin Ceremony take place on Wednesday to uphold the Air Force traditions.
It is always great to get there for both days to make sure your trainee has their family with them throughout the event, but there can often be accommodations made if circumstances prohibit you from attending both days.
How do I get onto the base at Lackland Air Force Base?
Getting onto any military base requires action to be taken well before a family member steps foot on the base.
For events like graduation, a trainee will be required to fill out special passes detailing who they want to let onto the base for their graduation ceremony.
Trainees will fill out these forms and have them mailed to any guests they wish to come to their graduation that will arrive before the date of the ceremony.
If you do not get these passes or do not present them upon arrival at the base, there is almost no way that you will be granted access to any of the base’s facilities.
When you arrive with your access pass, you will be asked for that and some vehicle information before you are issued a guest pass that will allow you to enter on to the base itself.
Air Force Basic Training Graduation Dress Code
Similar to the other branches, there is no specific dress code for guests who are coming to view a graduation ceremony.
The trainees will be wearing their dress uniforms, so it may be respectful to honor their hard work and dedication with slightly nice clothing.
This ceremony also takes place outside in Texas, so prepare for the heat with what you wear. Don’t forget your sunscreen!
Who can come to Air Force BMT graduation?
The rules for Air Force graduation state that each trainee is currently allowed to invite up to 6 friends or family to their graduation event.
In the past, graduates were allowed 10 guests and we will do our best to update our page should the Air Force conduct ceremonies at full capacity again.
Related Article – ASVAB Scores for Air Force jobs
Graduation Schedule
The current graduation schedule is as follows:
Wednesday
- 6:00 a.m. – Pfingston Reception Center opens
- 7:30 a.m. – Airman’s Run
- 8:00 a.m. – Welcome Briefing
- 8:45 a.m. – New spouse orientation
- 9:00 a.m. – Events Briefing repeated
- 10:00 a.m. – Airman’s Coin Ceremony
- 10:30 a.m. – Town Pass
- 8:00 p.m. – Airmen due back at squadron
Thursday
- 6:00 a.m. – Pfingston Reception Center opens
- 7:30 a.m. – Buses for handicapped visitors begin for travel to parade ground
- 9:00 a.m. – Graduation Parade
- 9:30 a.m. – On-Base Liberty
- 6:00 p.m. – Airmen due back at squadron
Where can I watch a live stream of the graduation?
The graduation live stream has been discontinued. However, another way to participate in the graduation ceremonies is to watch the recorded version.
Recordings of graduation events can be found on Facebook and graduation ceremony recordings on YouTube.
Conclusion
No matter how you want to support your trainee, their graduation ceremony is always going to go down as a very memorable event in their career.
Restrictions due to Covid have eased, but some limitations still exist. If you can’t support your loved one in person, there’s always the option to view via the livestream.
References
Related Article – 7 Air Force Basic Training Gift Ideas
Born and raised in Woodbridge, NJ, he graduated from the New Jersey Institute Of Technology with an MBA in eCommerce.His hobbies include beach volleyball, target shooting, and lifting.
Rob is also a Commercially rated pilot and Certified Flight Instructor (CFI), with over 1,500 hours of flight time.
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Hello,
My son is leaving for Airforce basic training on 6/22/21. He was told that that his graduation date is 8/5/21. This math doesn’t make sense with the chart dates youve posted. Can you check the date for me, please? Hes in flight 313. Wouldnt his graduation date be 8/12/21?
Thank you
Yeah that’s strange. It should be approximately 7 weeks and 2 days after his start date, which would make it 8/12/21. I just sent out an email to USAF BMT command, will update here ASAP.
Rob V.
Owner / Founder
OperationMilitaryKids.org
I appreciate your help. Thank you so much. Plane tickets and all…don’t want to miss that graduation!
Colleen 🙂
Not a problem, glad to help! I haven’t heard back from them so far, but I’ll try emailing them one more time. If you (or anyone else for that matter) want to try reaching out to them as well, here’s their email address: [email protected]
I will update here again in a couple days, but if I don’t hear back from them, I’d recommend asking your son / daughter directly. They will definitely have the most accurate graduation date info.
Rob V.
Owner / Founder
OperationMilitaryKids.org
I spoke too soon! They literally just got back to me, here’s what they had to say:
“Thank you for contacting the Pfingston Reception Center (PRC). We recommend waiting for the trainee to leave to basic military training first as they will send out a Family Welcome Letter in the early weeks of training that states the graduation date, event times, and other pertinent information that will help you plan accordingly. Until then, the best way to calculate a graduation date is to not count the arrival week as we consider this week “zero” week, then count 7 Thursdays after the arrival week and that will give you the Retreat/Coin Ceremony date with the Graduation day on Friday.”
So it looks like I was right, his graduation will be Thursday, 8/12/2021. Either way, it sounds like they’ll be sending you that Family Welcome Letter which will have all of the relevant info, so keep an eye out for that.
Glad to help you and let me know if you have any further questions!
Rob V.
Owner / Founder
OperationMilitaryKids.org
Hello,
My son has asked the recruiter and this has lead me to Google and you. If you hear anything, yes, please let me know. Thank you for the email address. Appreciate any help you can give me. Have a great day!
Yeah they’re just not getting back to me…I would stick with what your sons recruiter told you, he will definitely have the most accurate info. If I hear back I will definitely update this page, thanks for reaching out Colleen!
Rob V.
Owner / Founder
OperationMilitaryKids.org
How accurate is the information that all graduation attendees must be vaccinated? Our son’s planned graduation date is June 2nd 2022. Thank you
Hi EVC,
The Air Force just recently issued a bulletin stating that graduation attendees no longer need to be vaccinated to attend. Hope this helps!
Rob V.
Founder, OMK
My son graduation is April 28th @ Lackland.
Are they allowing us to watch their last run?
Hi Lisa,
The Air Force training command opened up the Airman’s Run to the public in Nov. of 2021, so you should be able to watch. Hope this helps and congrats!
Rob V.
Founder, OMK
Hi. Do you have dates for 2023?
Thank you
Just updated, sorry it took so long!
Rob V.
OMK Owner / Founder
I didn’t see any dates for June, July, August 2023. Do you have them, or know where I might find them.
Hey Sandra,
Sorry for the late reply. I just updated all the Air Force BMT graduation dates for the rest of the year. Hope this helps and good luck!
Rob V.
OMK Founder
Hello! Do you have graduation dates for the rest of 2023? My daughter leaves on June 26th but the chart posted here only goes until May 30th. Thank you!
Hey April,
I just updated all the graduation dates, looks like she’ll be graduating on August 17, 2023. Definitely double check with her or someone on base just to be sure. Hope this helps and good luck!
Rob V.
OMK Founder
Terrific! Thank you so much. That was the date I came up with as well, but I wanted confirmation. I will, of course, double check, but this is very helpful. Thank you!
Yup no problem, glad to help!
Rob V.
OMK Founder
Hi Rob,
About a thousand years ago when I went to BMT, the graduating trainee also had liberty through the weekend. Is that the case still, or should we not plan on being able to see our Airman after 6pm on Thursday?
Thanks!
-Todd
Hey Todd,
Thanks for your comment. As far as I’m aware, the Air Force still allows graduates to hang out with their families immediately after graduation. That said, they are NOT allowed to leave the base on that day, and must be back in their dorms by 6 pm.
Hope this helps, and congrats to your new graduate!
Rob V.
OMK Founder