# RG: Counter WMD Technologies and Capabilities Development

**R-2A activity** of project RG — CWMD TECHNOLOGIES AND CAPABILITIES DEVELOPMENT  
**Program element:** 0603160BR — Counter Weapons OF MASS Destruction Advanced Technology Development  
**Component:** Defense-Wide · **Budget Activity:** 3  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603160BR/RG/a0  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603160BR/RG

## Summary

This activity requests $328.4M in FY2027, 100% of project RG, up 43% on FY2026. The R-2A exhibit describes it across FY2025–FY2027, including what the FY2027 money is planned to buy.

## What the FY2027 request buys

**FY2027 planned work.** - Mature Full Dimensional Defeat Enterprise functionality featuring studies, analysis, reporting and Combatant Command exercise support; furthering development of agent-based modeling for system of systems analysis of WMD targets and expanding functional agent libraries and facility templates, including larger system of facilities and cross-domain targeting. - Develop a robust WMD-Target Immersive Mission Planning capability to leverage target models to create a 3-D immersive virtual reality environment for iterative mission planning; enhanced incorporation of multiple intelligence products and formats into models. - Finalize development of baseline Mobile Missile Launcher Fragility testbed and complete initial Small-Scale test events to anchor new analytic approach for blast and fragment insult to WMD warhead for modeling and analysis. - Deliver modernized and integrated CWMD planning tool operational capabilities that enable interactive targeting/management workflows, enhanced user interface/experience, seamless cross-domain data sharing, and intelligence community-standard graphics/products. - Implement next generation, automated technical sensing and machine learning tools to identify WMD capabilities via electromagnetic signatures and deliver capabilities to U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOOM) via hardware and analysis tools; transition final electromagnetic detection capability to USSOCOM improving their capability by 100% to detect near-peer strategic WMD-related signatures for CWMD operations. - Provide offensive, scalable, and flexible options for execution of overt and discreet CWMD operations to deny, delay, degrade, disrupt, defeat, or destroy facilities, critical nodes, and other WMD capabilities in support of Combatant Commands. - Transition Next Gen (6G/Next G) Radio Frequency threat countermeasures capability for Explosive Ordnance Disposal render safe operations to USSOCOM and other U.S. Government entities. - Develop and transition next generation device for alarm and trigger bypass and work in augmented reality visualization of WMD for enhanced crisis response in NO FAIL render safe missions. - Deliver Device Defeat Explosively Formed Projectile and shaped charge Device Defeat Tools. - Perform sled and arena testing to assess enhanced effectiveness of upscaled weapons against hardened targets to include effectiveness on tunnels. - Demonstrate proof of ejection system dart survivability for the Command, Control and Communications for Penetrating Ordnance (C3PO) project, an effort developing a novel capability to deny an adversary access to/from their tunnel facilities using current penetrating weapons. - Develop WMD electronic attack capabilities to destroy, degrade, and/or disrupt WMD adjacent Command, Control, Computing, Communications, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Targeting (C5ISRT) components. - Transition ground-delivered technology enabling the disruption of critical machinery used in logistics nodes. - Transition novel detection and characterization of adversary mobile systems, technologies enabling novel communications to underwater defeat systems against adversary subsea infrastructure and pre-deployed underwater systems. RDT&E efforts to defeat Hardened and Deeply Buried Target (HDBT) may include: - Improve efforts on penetration analysis, modeling, and testing to more effectively support development of new penetrating weapons and weaponeering tools for HDBT defeat in a wide variety of geologies. - Develop breaching charges with integrated blast pressure mitigation for defeat of barriers in hand dug, naturally occurring spaces, or dense urban environments. - Accelerate development of the Ring Initiation Focused Fragmentation Charge to increase lethality of ground force with safety review, production scale up for Operational Test and Evaluation, and Fielding and Deployment. - Advance multi-domain (space to sea floor) tactical communications technologies for anti-access area denial, and denied area access for Special Operations Forces and partner nations in U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and other Combatant Commands areas of responsibility. - Leverage Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning to improve the ability to quickly weaponeer against a broad range of hard targets thus freeing Subject Matter Experts (human SMEs) to focus their efforts on the most complex and specialized HDBTs. - Enhance current weapon multi-hit tactic; determine maximum penetration depth of current weapons; determine the maximum limit of current weapons against a range of geologies including weak rock/soil utilizing the multi-hit tactic. - Conduct R&D in “skip” bombing capability to develop new tactics and weaponeering options; enabling deeper access for penetrating weapons - Improve targeting and weaponeering against hardened maritime and near shore targets; build and validate both high fidelity and engineering models to enable weaponeering in the Integrated Munitions Effects Assessment toolset. - Evaluate current hard target defeat capabilities with 2000lb Joint Direct Attack Munition Extended Range (JDAM-ER) (GBU-64) and provide recommendations on future JDAM-ER development to enhance HDBT penetration capabilities.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** The change from FY 2026 to FY 2027 aligns priority spending with the Secretary of War’s highest priorities to strengthen readiness, modernize capabilities, and sustain the force. Reflecting the designation of DTRA as the Hardened and Deeply Buried Target -Defeat (HDBT-D) Enterprise Mission Lead, the Fiscal Year 2027 budget allocates increased funding for HDBT-D efforts. This project also included an increase in funding for classified work.

## Before the request year

**FY2026 plans — current year.** - Develop and deliver Next Generation Agent Defeat and Advanced Energetics programs through innovative use of additive manufacturing technologies while maintaining weapons platform integration, enhancing performance, and supporting mission diversity. - Transition a group of autonomous ground and air robots equipped with CWMD-specific modular-mission-payloads that can meet a subset of tactical situational awareness, logistics, and casualty evacuation requirements. - Demonstrate electromagnetic pulse (directed energy) effects capabilities on CWMD hardened structures. - Develop additional applicability and effects with the Super Polymer Advanced Absorbent Material and demonstrate capability on a relevant Chem/Bio target simulation. - Transition Next Gen (6G/Next G) radio frequency threat countermeasures capability for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) render safe operations to USSOCOM and other U.S. Government entities. - Transition Augmented Reality capability and dataset modules to user program of record for EOD render safe operations. - Deliver final reports to the Departments of War, Justice, and Energy on hydrodynamic tests from predictive modeling campaigns. - Develop process for the removal of brittleness in production of all aspects of U.S. munitions. - Develop competitive industry prototypes for Hyper Nomad for advanced mobile missile detection capabilities. - Implement next generation, ultra-low-visibility, automated technical sensing, and machine learning tools to identify weapons of mass destruction via radio frequency, seismic, acoustic, electro-magnetic, cyber, optical, and/or chemical signatures. - Transition five sets of a novel detection capability to USSOCOM improving their capability by 100% for wide area search of emerging and pacing biological and chemical threats. - Transition to the Air Force Technical Applications Center operations center the Sensor Placement Optimization Tool that accounts for both environmental conditions and sensing capabilities enabling the DoW to efficiently place Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) sensors increasing the probability of detecting WMD activity. - Demonstrate the capability to accurately emplace acoustic sensors to aid in the support of future arms control initiatives. - Utilize leading edge technologies in additive manufacturing and Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning to rapidly prototype a rugged, field-based system to fuse CBRN detection and sample processing technologies to analyze emerging WMD threats in near real-time to support USSOCOM offensive operations. - Transition three CBRN sensing payloads with fully autonomous capability to create 3-D maps and detect/delineate WMD threats in subterranean environments. - Support weapon development and weapon effects phenomenology programs with test design, requirements, and execution support ensuring operational requirements are met and validated models are integrated into weaponeering planning tools. - Deliver enhanced Adversarial Weapons Asset Protection Toolkit capability in Vulnerability Assessment and Protection Option tool via a critical expansion to the library of adversarial weapons, adding the highest priority weapons for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and U.S. European Command. - Mature FDDE organization and functionality featuring workshops, demonstrations and Combatant Command exercise support using agent-based modeling for system of systems analysis of WMD targets. - Develop and transition new pilot/exploratory Unmasking Denial and Deception technological and process approaches for finding and characterizing the toughest "Unknown/Unknown" targets that are masked by denial and deception techniques.

**FY2025 accomplishments.** - Demonstrate electromagnetic pulse (directed energy) effects capabilities in a developed prototype on a relevant WMD hardened structure as prioritized by end users. - Develop additional full-scale WMD manufacturing facility target model to test multiple agent and facility defeat capabilities. - Optimize rubble generation in support of active denial of adversary’s use of hardened and deeply buried targets (HDBTs). - Develop and deliver high density high explosive materials to hold high value HDBT at risk. - Spiral develop unmanned kinetic weapon system for precision defeat of WMD platforms and infrastructure to deter WMD aggression in U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). - Test special purpose kinetics and other precision effects improved by additive manufacturing processes. - Test prototype that determines presence of WMD materials behind barriers to identify current and emerging WMD threats against combat forces in USINDOPACOM. - Test capability to bypass WMD mechanical security to support efforts to increase situational awareness of adversarial WMD activities in USINDOPACOM. - Conduct functional utility test of universal decoding prototypes for operational utility against USINDOPACOM threats. - Provide offensive, scalable, and flexible options for execution of overt and discreet counter proliferation and CWMD operations to deny, delay, degrade, disrupt, defeat, or destroy facilities, critical nodes, and other WMD capabilities in support of USSOCOM and other CCMDs. - Development and transition of Kinetic Barrier Defeat Tools, Maritime System Defeat Tools, and Critical Node Defeat Tools for CCMD use. - Development of WMD Facility Defeat operational support technologies for CCMD use. - Transition next generation 6G/ & “Next G” radio frequency threat countermeasures capability to USSOCOM, CCMDs, and other U.S. government partners. - Provide diagnostic and defeat tools against emergent CWMD requirements for specific Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) render safe operations. - Deliver capability integrating tools to create and modify buildings in a computer-based simulation/model to share targeting data with other targeting systems seamlessly; implement capability for cloud computing to accelerate targeting processing. - Release Integrated Munitions Effect Assessment (IMEA) V13.0 in new, modular architecture that enables greater sharing with key allies, cloud computing and supports seamless interoperability with targeting community. - Develop and integrate baseline mobile missile launcher models with WMD capabilities into IMEA to support rapid targeting and weapons effects predictions for pacing and acute threats. - Integrate modules to simulate combined kinetic and non-kinetic (direct energy/cyber) effects. - Integrate hypersonic system characterization and weapons data in models to allow for dynamic targeting of WMD targets including delivery systems. - Integrate dynamic weapon capabilities (penetration, fracturing) for adversarial weapons systems into Vulnerability Assessment and Protection Option (VAPO). - Move VAPO to net-centric cloud-based solution, enabling broader accessibility to multiple user communities and allowing for faster delivery time on capability enhancements for improved bug fix capability and version control, enhanced security, and better control over user access and experience. - Provide Targeting Weaponeering Assistance Cell weaponeering Subject Matter Experts to deliver ~500 (estimated) Targeting Recommendation Packages and participate in Targeting Planning Conferences in support of USINDOPACOM and U.S. European Command (USEUCOM). - Support weapon development and weapon effects phenomenology programs such as the Legacy Weapons Test Program with test design, requirements, and execution support ensuring operational requirements are met and validated models are integrated into weaponeering planning tools. - Mature Full Dimensional Defeat Enterprise (FDDE) organization and functionality featuring workshops, demonstrations and CCMD exercise support. - Enhance FFDE agent-based modeling approach to system of systems analysis of WMD targets, expanding functional agent libraries and facility templates, including larger system of facilities and cross-domain targeting. - Fully integrate Automated Advanced Target Development (A2TD) capability to produce automated Underground Targeting and Assessment System models on selected target sets to include automated procedures for feature extraction of observables, automated geology characterization, using Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Underground Facility Analysis Center (UFAC) approved layouts. - Coordinate with and receive certification from National Geospatial Intelligence Agency for point positioning capability to allow direct aim point determination without the requirement for separate geo-recertification of the point in a separate system. - Initiate WMD Target Immersive Mission Planning project to leverage target models built through A2TD and FDDE to create a 3D immersive virtual reality environment for iterative mission planning. - Develop Nuclear-Automated Advanced Target Development prototype ready for Verification and Validation which provides more realistic target input parameters by incorporating existing state of the art 3D UFAC DIA models for the basis of calculation.

## Funding

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 230.0 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 230.0 |
| FY2027 | Request | 328.4 |

> Prior, current and budget year only — an R-2A activity carries no five-year plan. It sums exactly into its project in the request year and not necessarily in any other.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Office of the Secretary of Defense RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibit R-2A, PE 0603160BR project RG (PB PB2027). Narrative is the government's own text.
- **No marks, no contractors at this grain** — congressional marks land on the program element and R-3 performers on the project.
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_activity`.

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