# Project 096 — C4I & Software Intensive Systems Test

**Program element:** 0603941D8Z — Test and Evaluation Science and Technology  
**Project:** 096  
**Component:** Defense-Wide  
**Appropriation:** 0400 — RDT&E, Defense-Wide  
**Budget Activity:** 3 — Advanced Technology Development  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603941D8Z/096  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603941D8Z

## Summary

Project 096 — C4I & Software Intensive Systems Test requests $754.6M in FY2027, 20% of the $3.83B requested for program element 0603941D8Z, up 5458% on FY2026. 1 R-2A activity decomposes the request.

**Markets:** IT & Software Services — matched on the project title only, and no market size is quoted.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 42.9 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 13.6 |
| FY2027 | Request | 754.6 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 515.9 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 509.4 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 510.4 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 510.1 |

> Estimate types are not summed. This project is one leaf of PE 0603941D8Z; the PE total is the sum of its projects, never added to them.

## What project 096 buys

The Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence (C4I) and Software Intensive Systems (SIS) Test (C4T) project addresses test technology for next generation resilient, survivable, federated networks and information systems (information superiority) from the tactical level up to strategic planning. The technology development efforts within the C4T project have been prioritized to align with the Department’s guidance of S&T Communities of Interest (CoIs) and the National Defense Strategy. Gaps are driven by more complex warfare environments and distributed systems; large quantities of data and intelligence (e.g., Big Data, Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) and Machine Learning Algorithms (MLA)); and more software intensive systems (e.g. F-35, CVN, IBCS)). C4T addresses gaps in Big Data Analytics technologies to gain knowledge from massive amounts of structured and unstructured data collected over a single test, but also expanded to look at the systems’ performance over the acquisition lifecycle. The technologies are required when testing sensor platforms, command and control systems and weapon platforms that support the kill chain in a Joint multi-domain operation. These systems must be evaluated for their ability to provide the accurate, timely transfer of data (e.g., target tracks, weapons allocation, mission tasking, and situational awareness) as the data passes among the Services, Warfighting Domains, and Coalition Partners. C4T also addresses gaps in Live and Simulated Environments, these technologies are required to increase the use of a distributed test environment for new warfare concepts leveraging simulated entities (e.g. modeling and simulation) for more thorough joint mission context platform T&E (e.g., Anti-Access Arial Denial (A2AD) and Manned and Unmanned Systems (MUM-T)). The technologies within C4T will remove undesired distributed testing biases while improving test agility and the tester’s ability to effectively support knowledge management, rapid analysis of “Big Data," and automated test reporting. The C4T project advances these test technologies as well as Big Data collection, analysis, and visualization that enable the virtual integration of Department weapon laboratories and open-air ranges.

## Activities (R-2A) — 1

| Activity | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 | Move | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C4I and Software Intensive Systems Test | 42.9 | 13.6 | 754.6 | +5458% | [a0](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603941D8Z/096/a0) |

> 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.

### C4I and Software Intensive Systems Test

In FY 2027, C4T will continue to mature technologies for testing next generation resilient, survivable, federated networks and information systems (information superiority). Highlights include: - Establish and standardize new test locations for drone dominance, directed energy, and EW/spectrum testing, leveraging existing DoW and non-DoW…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0603941D8Z/096/a0

## 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/0603941D8Z.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Office of the Secretary of Defense RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-2A/R-3, PE 0603941D8Z project 096 (PB PB2027).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0603941D8Z")`.

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