Founded to Protect Those Who Serve

AFBA was born in the basement of the Pentagon to solve a critical need in support of military members when commercial companies would not pay life insurance benefits if a servicemember died in combat. With the support of General of the Army, Dwight D. Eisenhower, our noble mission was born and grew.

Coverage was extended to retirees and separatees, dependents, and enlisted personnel to provide protection to even more military families.

In 1996, our wholly owned affiliate 5Star Life Insurance Company was established to provide AFBA members coverage tailored to the unique needs of service life. Since then, 5Star Life has grown and evolved into other segments including the employer group and worksite benefits markets.

After 9/11, AFBA realized that serving, defending, and protecting our country extended beyond the military and began offering membership to first responders.

AFBA began to partner with state associations to offer membership to the National Guard through the State Sponsored Life Insurance program.

Charles C. Blanton Family Survivor College Scholarship is established for families of eligible fallen members.

Began partnering with the First Responder Task Force to bring member benefits to our nation’s first responders. The Task Force serves as our “boots on the ground” and has served more than 7,000 agencies.

We serve 915,000 members and their families and have paid over $2 billion in survivor benefits in every military conflict since the Korean War through our modern-day war on terrorism.