RDT&E Program Element · President's Budget PB2027

Joint Simulation Environment

PE 0207606F·U.S. Air Force·Approp. 3600 — RDT&E·BA4 — Advanced Component Development & Prototypes
FY2027 Request
$302.8M
⚑ Contested — House approps cuts 8.1%
HitchAI read

U.S. Air Force funding ramps 22% to a $302.8M request in FY2027, sustained across the five-year plan. In the FY2027 defense authorization, the House funded it in full; the Senate funded it in full; House appropriators cut 8.1% (to $278.2M). AFLCMC/WNR leads the industry work.

FY2027 Request
$302.8M
▲ 22% vs FY2026
House approps mark
$278.2M
▼ $24.6M vs request
FY2026 Enacted
$247.5M
In law

For fiscal year 2027, the U.S. Air Force is requesting $302.8M for Joint Simulation Environment under RDT&E program element 0207606F, up 22% over FY2026. In the FY2027 defense authorization, House approps moved to cut it to $278.2M.

Funding trajectory

Funding profile, FY2025–FY2031

Prior years are actuals, the budget year is the request, and the outyears are the FYDP plan. Estimate types are colored and never summed into one figure.

1002003000147.4FY25ACTUAL247.5FY26ENACTED302.8FY27REQUEST352.2FY28334.0FY29323.5FY30313.1FY31HOUSE APPROPS
Actual Enacted Request Outyear (FYDP) House approps mark
Fiscal YearEstimate TypeAmount ($M)
FY2025Actual147.4
FY2026Enacted247.5
FY2027Request302.8
FY2028Outyear352.2
FY2029Outyear334.0
FY2030Outyear323.5
FY2031Outyear313.1
Where it sits

Acquisition lifecycle

This program is funded in RDT&E Budget Activity 4 — Advanced Component Development & Prototypes.

Complete
Research
BA 1–2
Complete
Advanced Technology
BA 3
Current
Prototyping
BA 4
Later
Development & Fielding
BA 5–7
Inside the program element

1 project rolls up into PE 0207606F

Projects are the summable leaves — the PE total is their sum, never added to it. Program elements and projects carry the full five-year plan; activities stop at the budget year. This PE moves 22% overall, which can hide much larger swings below.

Project 642407

Joint Simulation Environment

$302.8MFY2027 request ▲ 22%
FY2025 actual$147.4M
FY2026 enacted$247.5M
FY2027 request$302.8M
Product DevelopmentTest and Evaluation

Joint Simulation Environment (JSE) is the Air Force's synthetic solution for High-End Advanced Training, Tactics, and Testing (HEAT3). JSE supports operational plan rehearsals, large force exercises, aircrew training events, and aircraft platform operational test campaigns. This capability directly supports United States Air Force Warfare Center (USAFWC), United States Air Force Weapons School, Air Force Test Center (AFTC), Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC), and addresses platform training and test efforts that cannot be performed in open air. JSE encompasses, but is not limited to, lab facilities for development and experimentation, as well as multiple test and training locations, to include, but not limited to: Joint Integrated Test & Training Center Nellis AFB (JITTC-N), Digital Test & Training Range Nellis AFB (DTTR-N), Digital Test & Training Range Edwards AFB (DTTR-E), and future planned location JITTC-Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JITTC-E). JSE Platform-In-A-Box (PIAB) Operational Flight Program (OFP) Based Simulator Development: Entails the study, evaluation, early experimentation, and development for platforms beyond the current/existing F-35 capability. Activities include analysis of OFPs, to include high-fidelity aircraft mission system and sensor models, against JSE software and interface standards, as well as common hardware standards enabling remote monitoring, updates, and security management. JSE Digital Test and Training Ranges (DTTR): Maintains and upgrades existing test capabilities, to include the continuation of installation, integration, and verification/validation activities in support of fielded and future platforms and virtual air threats. Furthermore, the 445 Test Squadron at DTTR-E manages Developmental Test (DT) and Operational Test (OT) events, as well as cyber testing integration for the JSE Enterprise as part of their Executing Test Organization (ETO) role, delegated to the 445th TS by the 412th Test Wing as the JSE Enterprise's Lead Developmental Test Organization (LDTO). JSE Core Environment Development/Integration: Continues to develop JSE foundational capabilities enabling further test, integration, and training.

Accomplishments / planned programs (R-2A) — prior, current and budget year only
FY2025 actual$4.1M
FY2026 enacted$37.5M
FY2027 request$45.2M

FY 2027 continues additional development, evaluations, and experimentation of system models and OFP-based simulators to assess OFP interoperability, to include but not limited to continued integration of E-7 PIAB, Command and Control capabilities, continued integration of F-22 PIAB, F-15EX PIAB development and associated integration, as…

Read the FY2027 plan →
FY2025 actual$16.8M
FY2026 enacted$14.6M
FY2027 request$22.9M

FY 2027 is a continuation of FY 2026 plans to include, but are not limited to, F-35, F-22, and Virtual Airborne Threat Solution (VATS) installation, integration, and verification and validation activities. Continued support for day-to-day digital test and training range operations (vision for JSE is to optimize test reality, capacity…

Read the FY2027 plan →
FY2025 actual$126.4M
FY2026 enacted$195.4M
FY2027 request$234.6M

FY 2027 is a continuation of FY 2026 efforts to include, but are not limited to, Global Reusable Interface Domain (GRID) development, Next Generation Threat System (NGTS) virtual entities expansion, Weapon Server Common Environment (WSCE) server integration, GRID core services (weather, Infrared, Electronic Warfare, Cyber, Space, data…

Read the FY2027 plan →
Congressional action

The request is contested

Committee marks on the FY2027 request. Adds and cuts are reconciled in conference before they become law.

RequestPresident's Budget
$302.8M
House NDAA (HASC)HASC
$302.8M full · +$0
Senate NDAA (SASC)SASC
$302.8M full · +$0
House Approps (HAC-D)HAC_D
$278.2M −$24.6M · −8.1%
▲ $24.6M chamber gap — unresolved as of 2026-07-27. These are FY2027 authorization marks (NDAA); appropriations and the conference agreement may differ.
Who's building it

Where the FY2027 request goes

Performers named in the R-3 exhibit, resolved into industry, government-lab, and unspecified shares. Budget-justification contract funding, not obligations.

AFLCMC/WNR
$302.8M · 100%
JSE Platform In-A-Box (PIAB) and Pilot Vehicle Interface (PVI) Hardware Simulator Development
Where FY2027 funding flowsShare$M
Industry primes100%302.8
FY2027 request100%302.8
See AFLCMC/WNR's full federal contract ledger members
Program detail

Mission & acquisition strategy

Joint Simulation Environment (JSE) is the Air Force's synthetic solution for High-End Advanced Training, Tactics, and Testing (HEAT3). JSE supports operational plan rehearsals, large force exercises, aircrew training events, and aircraft platform operational test campaigns. This capability directly supports United States Air Force Warfare Center (USAFWC), United States Air Force Weapons School, Air Force Test Center (AFTC), Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC), and addresses platform training and test efforts that cannot be performed in open air.

The JSE program will leverage a combination of interagency agreements and contracts to support the continued development, experimentation, integration, testing and fielding of the core environment software and hardware infrastructure. On 22 June 2025, JSE program entered the Execution Phase of the Software Acquisition Pathway for the execution of both software and hardware requirements. This supports integration of additional platforms with the synthetic environment, the JSE program office will execute agreements with aircraft platform program offices and leverage existing platform contracts to support risk reduction, development, integration & test of additional platform-specific simulator capabilities.

Project 642407 — Joint Simulation Environment
  • Product Development
  • Test and Evaluation
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Ask this program element

Answers are generated from the figures on this page — the FY2027 justification exhibits and the marks tracked above — and nothing else is consulted. Confirm any figure against the cited exhibit before you use it externally.

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Questions this page can answer
How does the FY2027 request compare with FY2026, and what does the five-year plan show?What did House approps do to this request, and what is still unresolved?How is the FY2027 request split between industry and government performers?In plain terms, what is this program element for and how is it being acquired?

This page carries the budget justification and the NDAA marks — nothing else. For what AFLCMC/WNR has actually been obligated, the ledger is at hitchintel.com/vendors; for live solicitations, hitchintel.com/opportunities. Both are member surfaces.

Provenance

Cite this page

Sources
FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification · Exhibits R-2 / R-3 · PE 0207606F (President's Budget PB2027) — and FY2027 NDAA committee marks, as tracked 2026-07-27.
Suggested citation
HitchAI, "Joint Simulation Environment (PE 0207606F)," federal budget intelligence, PB2027 vintage. hitchintel.com/programs/0207606F
Machine access
Markdown twin /programs/0207606F.md · MCP mcp.hitchintel.combudget_get_program_element, budget_get_cong_marks