# ST System Development — Program Element 0408011F

**Program element:** 0408011F  
**Component:** U.S. Air Force  
**Appropriation:** 3600 — RDT&E, Air Force  
**Budget Activity:** 7 — Operational System Development  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0408011F

## Summary

U.S. Air Force funding falls 100% to a $0.0M request in FY2027 (down from a FY2026 peak). In the FY2027 defense authorization, House appropriators added $43.2M (to $43.2M).

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 9.1 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 28.2 |
| FY2027 | Request | 0.0 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 0.0 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 0.0 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 0.0 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 0.0 |

> 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 | 0.0 | — |
| House Approps (HAC-D) | 43.2 | +43.2 |

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

## Projects (1)

| Project | Title | FY2025 actual | FY2026 enacted | FY2027 request | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 675138 | ST System Development | 9.1 | 28.2 | 0.0 | −100% |

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

### Project 675138 — ST System Development

Mission Description and Budget Item Justification Special Tactics (ST) is a human-based weapon system, comprised of both human and equipment capabilities formulated to provide the Air Force and Joint Force with support across the following missions: Global Access, Precision Strike, and Personnel Recovery (PR); with additional focus on Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO), Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Ground-based Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD). ST is employed by Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) across three distinct operator specialties: Combat Control, Pararescue, and Special Reconnaissance. ST, along with the Guardian Angel and Tactical Air Control Party (TACP) weapon systems, collectively make up Air Force Special Warfare (AFSPECWAR), formerly known as Battlefield Airmen. Special Warfare Acquisition, Growth and Refresh (SWAGR) is the program of record to develop, integrate, test, procure and field the latest technology and equipment across a wide range of capabilities to ensure AFSPECWAR ST operators can achieve the mission sets outlined above. Specifically, SWAGR delivers modernized capability in the areas of body-worn hardware/software, tactical communications, ground mobility, small UAS, visual augmentation, maritime, special reconnaissance, technical recovery, and assault zones. Funding will provide for continued software development and modernization of the body-worn kit to enhance situational awareness, communication, information management, and airpower integration for ST operators in the battlespace. These enhancements will improve the ability recognize, identify, range, nominate, and designate targets during both day and night operations. Improvements will also significantly reduce the time required to find, track, fix targets, and engage the enemy by attacking adversary signals of interest, providing highly accurate target grid coordinates in three dimensions, generating target imagery both pre- and post-strike, and transmitting target data to Command and Control centers.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| SWAGR | 9.1 | 28.2 | 0.0 |

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

## Mission & acquisition strategy

Mission Description and Budget Item Justification Special Tactics (ST) is a human-based weapon system, comprised of both human and equipment capabilities formulated to provide the Air Force and Joint Force with support across the following missions: Global Access, Precision Strike, and Personnel Recovery (PR); with additional focus on Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO), Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Ground-based Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD). ST is employed by Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) across three distinct operator specialties: Combat Control, Pararescue, and Special Reconnaissance.

Special Warfare Acquisition Growth and Refresh (SWAGR) awarded a competitive Systems Engineering and Integration contract in May FY 2023 to continue development and modernization of the software on the body worn kit from the prior machine-to-machine (M2M) software development contract. This effort includes system engineering, design, integration, and fielding support for M2M software. The above efforts may change based on the need to support current Air Force mission requirements.

## Related program elements

- [0207227F — Guardian Angel RDT&E](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0207227F) (Air Force)
- [0604786N — Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare Weapon Dev](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0604786N) (Navy)
- [0207133F — F-16 Squadrons](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0207133F) (Air Force)
- [0204311N — Integrated Surveillance System](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0204311N) (Navy)

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-3, PE 0408011F (PB PB2027); FY2027 NDAA committee marks (as of 2026-07-27).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0408011F")`.

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