# Directed Energy Technology — Program Element 0602605F

**Program element:** 0602605F  
**Component:** U.S. Air Force  
**Appropriation:** 3600 — RDT&E, Air Force  
**Budget Activity:** 2 — Applied Research  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0602605F

## Summary

U.S. Air Force requests $91.8M 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 funded it in full.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 92.4 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 96.2 |
| FY2027 | Request | 91.8 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 92.3 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 101.1 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 105.1 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 108.3 |

> 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 | 91.8 | — |
| House NDAA (HASC) | 91.8 | +0.0 |
| Senate NDAA (SASC) | 91.8 | +0.0 |
| House Approps (HAC-D) | 91.8 | +0.0 |

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

## Projects (3)

| Project | Title | FY2025 actual | FY2026 enacted | FY2027 request | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 625173 | Laser Technology | 46.0 | 52.8 | 50.8 | −4% |
| 624867 | Advanced Weapons & Survivability Technology | 39.2 | 43.3 | 41.0 | −5% |
| 624866 | Lasers & Imaging Technology | 7.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — |

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

### Project 625173 — Laser Technology

This project conducts research to advance the state-of-the-art in continuous wave (CW) and pulsed laser sources, optical beam combination techniques, optical beam control technologies, optical beam propagation methodologies, lethality enhancement techniques via laser effect testing, and the integration of these technologies into laboratory-level system demonstration packages for Air Force applications such as counter unmanned aerial systems (c-UAS), counter intelligence/ surveillance/reconnaissance (c-ISR), and counter missiles (c-Missile) for high value airborne asset (HVAA) protection, and point defense. This project conducts modeling, simulation, and analysis to guide science and technology investments and for assessing the military utility of the technologies being developed. Technologies developed under this project feed directly into laser system technology demonstrations to graduate the technology to a higher technology readiness level (TRL) under Program Element 0603605F / Advanced Weapons Technology, Project 633151 / Directed Energy Technology Development, Budget Activity (BA) 2.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Laser Technology | 46.0 | 48.8 | 50.8 |

> 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 624867 — Advanced Weapons & Survivability Technology

This project conducts research in high power electromagnetics (HPEM), which can include high power microwaves (HPM), plasmas, particle beams, and millimeter waves and other unconventional, innovative weapon technologies, to satisfy Department of the Air Force requirements in the following areas: counter unmanned aerial systems (c-UAS), counter intelligence/surveillance/reconnaissance (c-ISR), counter missiles (c-Missile) and counter electronics (c-Electronic) for high-value airborne asset (HVAA) protection, and point defense. This project conducts research to advance the state-of-the-art of HPM sources, antennas, and novel directed energy applications by investigating the effects of HPM weapons on a wide range of systems and components. This project conducts physics-level numerical simulations, modeling, and analysis to inform science and technology investments and for assessing the military utility of HPM systems. This project includes but is not limited to high power microwaves, plasmas, particle beams, and millimeter waves. Technologies developed under this project feed directly into HPM technology demonstrations to graduate the technology to higher technology readiness level (TRL) under Program Element 0603605F / Advanced Weapons Technology, Budget Activity (BA) 2.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Power Microwave and Unconventional Weapon Technologies | 15.4 | 17.3 | 41.0 |
| High Power Microwave Effects | 23.8 | 26.0 | 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.

### Project 624866 — Lasers & Imaging Technology

This Project explores the technical feasibility of high power lasers, including beam control, for applications such as aircraft protection, force protection, and precision engagement from the Department of the Air Force platforms. This Project investigates the effects of laser weapons on a wide range of systems and components as well as producing, modifying, validating and applying Directed Energy and non-Directed Energy concept development and assessment tools to determine which technology solutions to pursue.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Energy Laser Technologies and Directed Energy Assessments | 7.1 | 0.0 | 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

This Program conducts research, development, test and evaluation in advanced high energy laser (HEL) and high power electromagnetic (HPEM) technologies to satisfy Department of the Air Force requirements in areas including counter unmanned aerial systems (c-UAS), counter intelligence/surveillance/reconnaissance (c-ISR), counter missiles (c-Missile), and counter electronics (c-Electronic). This Program also conducts research and development in directed energy for lethal and non-lethal applications by assessing the vulnerability and lethality of high energy lasers and high power microwave systems to meet Air Force needs.

## Related program elements

- [0605604A — Survivability/Lethality Analysis](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605604A) (Army)
- [0604032F — DE Prototyping](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0604032F) (Air Force)
- [0605049A — Missile Warning System Modernization (MWSM)](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605049A) (Army)
- [1160431BB — Warrior Systems](https://hitchintel.com/programs/1160431BB) (Defense-Wide)

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-3, PE 0602605F (PB PB2027); FY2027 NDAA committee marks (as of 2026-07-27).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0602605F")`.

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