Flying Space-A from Japan and Korea: Yokota, Kadena and Osan

August 8, 2026RetireesJapan & KoreaBy the OCONUS Veterans team

For a retiree living in Japan or Korea, Space-A can turn an expensive trip home into a modest fee. It can also turn a planned weekend into four days in a terminal lounge. The difference is mostly preparation. This guide covers the three big Air Mobility Command terminals in the region, Yokota, Kadena and Osan, using what their official AMC pages said in November 2026.

Terminal rules, hours and contacts change often. AMC itself tells travelers to fully close and reopen the browser to be sure they are seeing the latest page. Check the terminal page again the day before you go. For an overview of Space-A worldwide, see our Space-A and base access page.

Who can fly, and in what category

AMC lists six Space-A categories drawn from DoD Instruction 4515.13. Retirees are in Category VI, along with their dependents, Reserve members, ROTC and certain other groups, veterans with a permanent service-connected disability rated as total, and surviving spouses of members who died on active duty or in certain training status. Category VI is last in line, so you board only after the higher categories are seated.

A few rules from AMC's official FAQ that matter to retirees:

• Retirees with a blue DD Form 2 ID, accompanied by their dependents, may fly Space-A. Family members may only travel when accompanied by their sponsor. A power of attorney does not change that.
• "Gray area" retirees (Reserve retirees not yet 60) and their accompanied dependents are limited to travel within CONUS and directly between CONUS and Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and American Samoa.
• Space-A privileges do not pass to dependents after the sponsor dies, with narrow exceptions. Dependents of a retiree who dies overseas may fly OCONUS to CONUS to accompany the remains. Surviving spouses of retirees may travel CONUS to CONUS.
• Space-A cannot be used for personal gain or business, or to establish a home.

Disabled veterans need to read the fine print. Kadena's terminal page states that 100% disabled veterans whose DoD ID card does not say "Retired" are limited under DoDI 4515.13 to CONUS-to-CONUS travel, and that travel will be denied out of Kadena.

The three terminals at a glance

Yokota also lists a number for calling from the U.S. on its page, and Kadena lists +81-98-938-1111 then 634-3784 from a U.S. phone. Kadena notes it cannot answer calls from blocked numbers, so turn off caller ID blocking. Yokota posts its 72-hour schedule daily by 8 p.m. Japan time; Kadena updates at 6 a.m., 1 p.m. and 9 p.m.

How to sign up

AMC headquarters does not run sign-ups. Each terminal does. The AMC Space Available page lists four ways to get on a terminal's register:

• The new AMC Travel Self-Signup Tool (AMC suggests another browser or clearing your cache if it will not load).
• The automated webpage sign-up form on the AMC site.
• AMC Form 140, Space Available Travel Request, downloaded and sent to the terminal.
• An email to the terminal with the required information.

The required information is: email address, rank or grade, full name, service branch, military status, names of dependent travelers, total seats needed, your travel eligibility category, leave dates (where they apply), whether you have your overseas travel documents in hand, and up to five destinations. AMC specifically asks you not to send your Social Security number or other sensitive personal data.

Kadena's page notes its online sign-up link is for Category VI only. Categories I to V send documents instead.

According to AMC's FAQ, all travelers remain on the Space-A list for 60 days after registration, for the duration of their travel authorization, or until selected for travel. Sign up early at every terminal you might use, including your return terminal once you know it.

Step by step: your first Space-A trip from Japan or Korea

1. Check documents. Every traveler needs a valid passport, plus any visa or entry authorization for the destination. Dependents 14 and older need their own uniformed services ID card. Children under 14 need a government-issued document proving age, and AMC asks for a DEERS printout or orders to show their relationship to you.
2. Sign up at the departure terminal and list up to five destinations.
3. Watch the 72-hour schedule on the terminal's AMC page or social media and pick a flight with seats likely to be released.
4. Handle exit immigration if you are non-SOFA (see the next section). This is the step retirees miss.
5. Mark yourself present at the passenger service counter. AMC says you can do this up to 24 hours before the flight's roll call, and you must be marked present to be included.
6. Be at roll call with your whole party, documents and bags. Higher categories are seated first, so Category VI travelers board only if seats remain.
7. Pay fees if selected, then check bags.
8. Have a backup plan. AMC reminds travelers that there is no guarantee of a seat and that Space-A travelers must be ready to pay for commercial travel if schedules change.

The immigration step for non-SOFA retirees

If you are a retiree living in Japan, you are not covered by the SOFA (see our post on base access for retirees in Japan). That changes how you leave the country on a military flight.

Kadena is the clearest. Its terminal page says non-SOFA passengers, which it defines as retirees, Japanese passport holders, and dependents not stationed in Japan, must process immigration at the off-base immigration office. Within 24 hours of departure, ask the terminal for a departure slip or boarding pass, then go to the Kadena Branch Office of the Fukuoka Regional Immigration Bureau, Naha District Office, Rotary Building #1, 290-9 Kadena Town, phone 098-957-5252, for your exit stamp. The terminal does not provide transportation, so arrange a taxi or rental car. Kadena also reminds arriving Space-A passengers to keep their boarding pass, because it is needed to clear Japanese immigration.

Yokota says Japanese citizens must stamp out at Government of Japan immigration no earlier than 24 hours before travel, with immigration open 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, and it posts a Government of Japan stamp information sheet on its page. As of October 3, 2026, SOFA stamps are no longer issued at the Yokota terminal; they moved to Building 210 (Security Forces) on Mondays and Tuesdays, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. If you are a non-SOFA retiree, ask the terminal exactly where and when you need to clear immigration before your flight.

Osan does not spell out a departure immigration procedure for non-SOFA residents on its terminal page. If you are a retiree living in Korea on a Korean visa, confirm departure procedures with the terminal before your trip.

Coming back is just as important. Japan admits U.S. citizens visa-free for short stays (90 days), and Korea's K-ETA exemption for U.S. visitors runs through December 31, 2026; check k-eta.go.kr before any trip after that date. If you live in either country on a long-term status, carry your residence card and make sure your status will still be valid when you return. See visa paths for Japan and Korea.

Bags, fees and small things that matter

• Baggage: all three terminals list two checked bags per person, up to 70 pounds each and no more than 62 linear inches, plus one carry-on and one personal item that fits under the seat.
• Head tax: Kadena and Osan list a $41.63 per passenger charge for Space-A travelers on Patriot Express flights (Kadena calls it a head tax; Osan calls it head tax and federal inspection fee).
• Meals at Kadena: $8.75 each, cash only, exact change.
• Shoes: Osan says open-toe and open-heel shoes are prohibited on military (organic) aircraft. Kadena asks travelers not to wear open-toed, open-heeled or high-heeled shoes on AMC flights, except the Patriot Express.
• Arrivals in the U.S.: if you are traveling on a passport, AMC says you can only return to CONUS through authorized ports of entry with customs and immigration clearance.
• Health attestation: after November 3, 2026, passengers on international flights to the U.S. must sign a statement that they have not been in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the prior 21 days. Kadena posts the form.
• Pets: AMC has new in-cabin kennel rules and CDC screwworm requirements for pets entering the U.S. Read the terminal's pet page before you plan to fly with an animal.

When to go

AMC's FAQ says the best Space-A travel is any time other than peak PCS, travel and holiday periods, which it lists as December to January and June to August. Retirees have the advantage of flexible dates. Use it.

A realistic example

Example (hypothetical): A retired Air Force master sergeant living near Kadena wants to see family in Washington State. Sixty days out he emails 733ams.space-available@us.af.mil with his Category VI sign-up and his spouse's name, listing Seattle and two other destinations. The week of travel he watches the 72-hour schedule, sees a Patriot Express with seats likely, gets a departure slip from the terminal the day before, and takes a taxi to the Kadena immigration branch office for exit stamps for both of them. At roll call they are selected, pay $41.63 each, and check four bags under 70 pounds. He has a refundable commercial booking as backup, just in case.

Bottom line

Space-A from Japan and Korea works well for retirees who plan for the paperwork and accept the uncertainty. Before every trip, re-read the official pages for Yokota, Kadena and Osan, and the AMC Space Available page. OCONUS Veterans is not affiliated with AMC or DoD.

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Published August 8, 2026. Information only, not legal, tax, immigration or medical advice. Confirm with the official sources.