# Project 2939 — RQ-4 Modernization

**Program element:** 0305421N — RQ-4 Modernization  
**Project:** 2939  
**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/2939  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N

## Summary

Project 2939 — RQ-4 Modernization requests $325.0M in FY2027, 94% of the $344.9M requested for program element 0305421N, down 7.2% on FY2026. 4 R-2A activities decompose the request. Northrop Grumman is the largest named R-3 performer at $256.2M, 79% of the project's FY2027 R-3 total.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 428.4 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 350.1 |
| FY2027 | Request | 325.0 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 306.3 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 115.3 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 110.1 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 112.1 |

> Estimate types are not summed. This project is one leaf of PE 0305421N; the PE total is the sum of its projects, never added to them.

## What project 2939 buys

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.

**R-3 lines of work:** Product Development; Support; Test and Evaluation; Management Services.

## Named R-3 performers

| Performer | $M | Share of this project's FY2027 R-3 total |
|---|---|---|
| Northrop Grumman | 256.2 | 79% |
| NAWC-AD | 40.8 | 13% |
| Huntington Ingalls | 6.3 | 1.9% |
| Boeing | 4.8 | 1.5% |

> Budget-justification contract funding, not obligations. Shares need not reach 100% — unnamed and government work is in the denominator.

## Activities (R-2A) — 4

| Activity | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 | Move | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product Development | 398.8 | 322.1 | 295.1 | −8% | [a0](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N/2939/a0) |
| Test & Evaluation (T&E) | 23.4 | 21.7 | 22.0 | +1% | [a2](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N/2939/a2) |
| ILS, Support, Studies & Analysis | 4.1 | 4.2 | 5.9 | +40% | — |
| Program Management (PM) | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.0 | −7% | — |

> Activities carry the prior, current and budget year only — no five-year plan. In the request year they partition this project exactly; in earlier years they can under-cover it.

### Product Development

FY27 continues to develop Increment 2 to incrementally incorporate software and hardware capability improvements, building on the Increment 1 baseline to ensure ongoing relevance of the MQ-4C capability. Increment 2 development includes efforts to provide advanced radar modes inclusive of GMTI, development of a high data rate (HDR)…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N/2939/a0

### Test & Evaluation (T&E)

FY27 continues to support integrated test team labor to reduce risk in design and development, perform subsystem level ground and acceptance testing, and obtain the necessary satellite communications required for system level test. To support the Increment 2 program schedule, the program continues System Level II and III testing…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N/2939/a2

### ILS, Support, Studies & Analysis

**FY2027 planned work.** FY27 continues support development and integration of product support considerations for Triton's Increment 2 development. FY27 activities will include implementation of requirements for logistics support, technical engineering services, sensor reliability and maintainability risk reduction, logistics supportability analyses and environmental planning, modeling and simulation, development of manpower and basing assessments, and development of technical data to support fielding of the MQ-4C Triton UAS Increment 2 capabilities.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Increase in FY27 for ILS, Support, Studies & Analysis is due to the increased logistics requirement associated with Increment 2 capabilities.

**FY2026 plans — current year.** FY26 continues development and integration of product support considerations for Triton's Increment 2 development. FY26 activities will include implementation of requirements for logistics support, technical engineering services, sensor reliability and maintainability risk reduction, logistics supportability analyses and environmental planning, modeling and simulation, development of manpower and basing assessments, and development of technical data to support fielding of the MQ-4C Triton UAS Increment 2 capabilities.

### Program Management (PM)

**FY2027 planned work.** FY27 continues PM support and travel, development of milestone and acquisition-related documentation, capability refinement and open systems architecture development, resource justification, affordability assessments and cost analyses, risk reduction and risk management, system integration and interoperability planning, technology maturity reviews, program protection planning, corrosion prevention planning, and joint and international cooperation efforts.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Decrease in FY27 for Program Management is due to the decreased requirement for PM support associated with Increment 2.

**FY2026 plans — current year.** FY26 continues PM support and travel, development of milestone and acquisition-related documentation, capability refinement and open systems architecture development, resource justification, affordability assessments and cost analyses, risk reduction and risk management, system integration and interoperability planning, technology maturity reviews, program protection planning, corrosion prevention planning, and joint and international cooperation efforts.

## What is NOT on this page

Congressional marks, the R-2 mission description and acquisition strategy, the industry vs government split of the whole request, and related program elements are recorded at **program-element** grain — an NDAA mark lands on a PE, never on a project. They are at https://hitchintel.com/programs/0305421N.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Navy RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-2A/R-3, PE 0305421N project 2939 (PB PB2027).
- **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.*