# ISR and Targeting of Airborne Threats

**R-2A activity** of project 63665A — Sensing and Spectrum Warfare Technology  
**Program element:** 0603203F — Advanced Aerospace Sensors  
**Component:** U.S. Air Force · **Budget Activity:** 3  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603203F/63665A/a3  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603203F/63665A

## Summary

This activity requests $10.5M in FY2027, 16% of project 63665A, up 114% on FY2026. The R-2A exhibit describes it across FY2026–FY2027, including what the FY2027 money is planned to buy.

## What the FY2027 request buys

**FY2027 planned work.** - Continue development of modes to be used on open architecture digital radio frequency arrays for future Air Force systems. - Continue work on a synthetic test environment (hardware in the loop/software in the loop) for evaluating digital radio frequency modes virtually without the need to conduct expensive flight testing. - Continue development of mission systems for autonomous collaborative platforms including radio frequency arrays and algorithms, electro-optical systems, and the necessary precision navigation and timing equipment to enable and optimize blue kill webs. - Commence examination of multi-domain sensing in the prosecution of air targets; study the impact and latency effects on operationally relevant scenarios. - Commence examination of algorithms and software architectures for autonomous mission sensing, sense making, and course-of-action determination.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** FY 2027 increased compared to FY 2026 by $5.618 million due to increased emphasis on targeted radio frequency sensing bands. This increase reflects programmatic adjustments to the DAF Science and Technology portfolio for strategic realignment to optimize core research areas and improve resource efficiency.

## Before the request year

**FY2026 plans — current year.** - Commence development of modes to be used on open architecture digital radio frequency arrays for future Air Force systems. - Commence work on a synthetic test environment for testing digital radio frequency modes virtually without the need to conduct expensive flight testing. - Commence development of mission systems for autonomous collaborative platforms including radio frequency arrays and algorithms, electro-optical systems, and the necessary precision navigation and timing equipment to enable and optimize blue kill chains.

## Funding

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 0.0 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 4.9 |
| FY2027 | Request | 10.5 |

> 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.

## Other activities in project 63665A

- [Spectrum Dominance Technology Demonstrations](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603203F/63665A/a4) — FY2027 32.7
- [ISR and Targeting of Surface Targets](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603203F/63665A/a1) — FY2027 23.6
- Multi-Spectrum Sensing Demonstration — FY2027 0.0
- Integrated Sensing Demonstration — FY2027 0.0

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibit R-2A, PE 0603203F project 63665A (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.*