# RQ-4 Modernization — Program Element 0305421N

**Program element:** 0305421N  
**Component:** U.S. Navy  
**Appropriation:** 1319 — RDT&E, Navy  
**Budget Activity:** 7 — Operational System Development  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N

## Summary

U.S. Navy requests $344.9M in FY2027, before stepping down 61% across the five-year plan. In the FY2027 defense authorization, the House funded it in full; the Senate funded it in full; House appropriators funded it in full. Northrop Grumman leads the industry work.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 444.0 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 361.9 |
| FY2027 | Request | 344.9 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 329.1 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 138.4 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 132.9 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 135.4 |

> Estimate types are not summed — the profile mixes actuals, enacted law, the request, and outyear projections.

## Congressional marks (FY2027)

| Stage | Marked ($M) | Change ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| Request | 344.9 | — |
| House NDAA (HASC) | 344.9 | +0.0 |
| Senate NDAA (SASC) | 344.9 | +0.0 |
| House Approps (HAC-D) | 344.9 | +0.0 |

> FY2027 NDAA authorization marks, as of 2026-07-27. Not appropriations or final law.

## Projects (2)

| Project | Title | FY2025 actual | FY2026 enacted | FY2027 request | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2939 | RQ-4 Modernization | 428.4 | 350.1 | 325.0 | −7% |
| 3329 | ISR&T Sensor Payloads | 15.7 | 11.8 | 19.9 | +68% |

> Projects are the summable leaves: the program element total is their sum, never added to it.

### Project 2939 — RQ-4 Modernization

Project Unit 2939: The MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Air System (UAS) is a high altitude-long endurance UAS designed to provide Fleet and combatant commanders with persistent maritime Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance & Targeting (ISR&T) of nearly all the world's high-density sea-lanes, littorals, and areas of national interest. The Triton air vehicle, mission control system, specialized sensors, and communications suite play a significant role in achieving the Navy's strategic vision for the 21st century. Triton provides persistent ISR&T and unparalleled situational awareness of the maritime battle space to the supported combatant commander and fleet commander. Triton provides the Warfighter with unprecedented levels of battlespace awareness to synchronize actions necessary to maintain maritime full spectrum superiority. Teamed with its manned-capability counterpart, the P-8A Poseidon, Triton is a key component of the Navy's maritime domain awareness family of systems. MQ-4C Triton leverages Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force manpower, training and maintenance efficiencies. Triton Early Operational Capability (EOC) was deployed in 2020 to provide early fleet integration risk reduction. It successfully prepared the fleet for fielding Initial Operational Capability (IOC) and concluded in 2022. In July 2023, Triton fielded the Increment 1 Multi-Intelligence (Multi-INT) IOC on schedule, successfully meeting the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) requirements. This enabled the Navy's Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Targeting (MISR-T) transition plan and initiated EP-3 Aries sundown. The Increment 1 Multi-INT capability provides Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Counter Electronic Attack (CEA) upgrades, and data dissemination across multiple classification domains. Triton initiated Increment 2 development in FY 2023.

**Named R-3 performers** (share of this project's FY2027 R-3 total, so they need not reach 100%)**:** Northrop Grumman (256.2, 79%), NAWC-AD (40.8, 13%), Huntington Ingalls (6.3, 1.9%), Boeing (4.8, 1.5%).

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Product Development | 398.8 | 322.1 | 295.1 |
| ILS, Support, Studies & Analysis | 4.1 | 4.2 | 5.9 |
| Test & Evaluation (T&E) | 23.4 | 21.7 | 22.0 |
| Program Management (PM) | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.0 |

> R-2A activities carry the prior, current and budget year only — no five-year plan. Coverage is partial, so count them, never total them.

### Project 3329 — ISR&T Sensor Payloads

The details of program element 0305421N Project 3329 are classified and are submitted to Congress in the classified budget justification books.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISR&T Sensor Payloads | 15.2 | 11.3 | 19.3 |
| ISR&T Support | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| ISR&T Test and Evaluation | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| ISR&T Program Management | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 |

> R-2A activities carry the prior, current and budget year only — no five-year plan. Coverage is partial, so count them, never total them.

## Where the FY2027 request goes

| Category | Share | $M |
|---|---|---|
| Industry primes | 92% | 316.9 |
| Other / unspecified | 8.1% | 28.0 |

**Top named industry performers:** Northrop Grumman ($256.2M, 74%), NAWC-AD ($40.8M, 12%).

> R-3 exhibit contract funding, not USAspending obligations.

## Mission & acquisition strategy

MISSION: Project Unit 2939: The MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Air System (UAS) is a high altitude-long endurance UAS designed to provide Fleet and combatant commanders with persistent maritime Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance & Targeting (ISR&T) of nearly all the world's high-density sea-lanes, littorals, and areas of national interest. The Triton air vehicle, mission control system, specialized sensors, and communications suite play a significant role in achieving the Navy's strategic vision for the 21st century. Triton provides persistent ISR&T and unparalleled situational awareness of the maritime battle space to the supported combatant commander and fleet commander.

The MQ-4C Triton acquisition approach supports the Navy's Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Targeting (MISR-T) Transition Plan. It provided a stable and effective baseline Early Operational Capability (EOC) in 2020 to facilitate Fleet introduction and learning while continuing development engineering and integrated test on Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), and other upgrades delivered in Increment 1 at IOC. Following the completion of Increment 1 development in FY2023 and achievement of IOC, Increment 2 capability development initiated without a gap in development.

## Related program elements

- [0305220N — MQ-4C Triton](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305220N) (Navy)
- [0603596N — LCS Mission Modules](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603596N) (Navy)
- [0207138F — F-22](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0207138F) (Air Force)
- [0208085JCY — Robust Infrastructure](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0208085JCY) (Defense-Wide)

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Navy RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-3, PE 0305421N (PB PB2027); FY2027 NDAA committee marks (as of 2026-07-27).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0305421N")`.

*HitchAI is an independent intelligence service, not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. Budget figures are requests/estimates, not obligations.*