RDT&E Program Element · President's Budget PB2027

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Capability

PE 0604035A·U.S. Army·Approp. 2040 — RDT&E·BA4 — Advanced Component Development & Prototypes
FY2027 Request
$0.3M
Army · RDT&E
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U.S. Army funding falls 98% to a $0.3M request 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.

FY2027 Request
$0.3M
▼ 98% vs FY2026
FY2026 Enacted
$17.1M
▼ 19% vs FY2025
FY2025 Actual
$21.1M
Prior year

For fiscal year 2027, the U.S. Army is requesting $0.3M for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Capability under RDT&E program element 0604035A, down 98% from FY2026.

Funding trajectory

Funding profile, FY2025–FY2031

Prior years are actuals, the budget year is the request, and the outyears are the FYDP plan. Estimate types are colored and never summed into one figure.

021.1FY25ACTUAL17.1FY26ENACTED0.3FY27REQUEST12.6FY2816.9FY2916.9FY3017.1FY31
Actual Enacted Request Outyear (FYDP)
Fiscal YearEstimate TypeAmount ($M)
FY2025Actual21.1
FY2026Enacted17.1
FY2027Request0.3
FY2028Outyear12.6
FY2029Outyear16.9
FY2030Outyear16.9
FY2031Outyear17.1
Where it sits

Acquisition lifecycle

This program is funded in RDT&E Budget Activity 4 — Advanced Component Development & Prototypes.

Complete
Research
BA 1–2
Complete
Advanced Technology
BA 3
Current
Prototyping
BA 4
Later
Development & Fielding
BA 5–7
Inside the program element

1 project rolls up into PE 0604035A

Projects are the summable leaves — the PE total is their sum, never added to it. Program elements and projects carry the full five-year plan; activities stop at the budget year. This PE moves -98% overall, which can hide much larger swings below.

Project BX7

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Capability

$0.3MFY2027 request ▼ 98%
FY2025 actual$21.1M
FY2026 enacted$17.1M
FY2027 request$0.3M
Management ServicesProduct DevelopmentTest and Evaluation

The United States Army Tactical Space Strategy provides tactical land component forces with space-based capabilities required to close the top three Large Scale Combat Operations (LSCO) gaps and counter adversarial surveillance and reconnaissance systems that affect friendly maneuver forces. National, DoW, commercial space-based, and High Altitude (HA) sensor data will be integrated into army and Joint ground architectures to provide resilient communications, assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT), all domain sensing capabilities (including space, high altitude, aerial and terrestrial sensors, data transport, data fusion, data analytics), automated Processing Exploitation and Dissemination (PED) required in the targeting process (target recognition, machine learning and advanced algorithm development), and provide command and control (C2) of non-kinetic fires for counter ISR capabilities to enable maneuver force operations. These capabilities will enable rapid and responsive all-domain targeting applications required to engage and defeat A2/AD forces and enable force projection and freedom of maneuver in contested Multi-Domain Operations and continue to inform the Army and Joint Services Family of Integrated Targeting Cells (FIT-C). Provides prototyping, experimentation, and risk reduction activities for ground architecture, supporting wide-area, responsive, and deep-area sensing required for Beyond-Line-of-Sight (BLOS) targeting and C2 of non-kinetic fires for counter ISR operations, significantly reducing Sensor to Shooter (S2S) timelines and enabling freedom of maneuver for operational forces. It will enable Warfighters at echelon to conduct C2 of counter surveillance and reconnaissance operations and to dynamically task, receive and disseminate data to directly support live-fire S2S demonstrations and assessments. FY2027 base funding in the amount of $0.319 million provides prototyping, experimentation, and risk reduction activities for the Army as it continues to develop and field prototypes to close the all-domain sensing capability gap and provide prototyping and experimentation for counter-adversarial surveillance and reconnaissance systems and their Command and Control (C2). Complimentary Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) technologies are assessed via various prototyping and ground station (FIT-C) architecture efforts.

Accomplishments / planned programs (R-2A) — prior, current and budget year only
LEO Satellite Capability▼ 98%
FY2025 actual$21.1M
FY2026 enacted$17.1M
FY2027 request$0.3M

FY2027 planned work FY2027 base funding in the amount of $0.319 million supports C2 architecture prototyping and experimentation of counter-ISR capabilities, including integration of Electronic Warfare (EW) systems for spectrum dominance and disruption of adversary sensors. Efforts will also focus on technology integration and technology development and assessments, including experimentation and prototyping in denied, degraded, intermittent, or limited (DDIL) operating environments. EW prototyping will specifically address capabilities to defeat enemy electronic attack and protection measures, ensuring resilient sensing and C2 in contested electromagnetic environments.

FY2026 to FY2027 change Resource requirements decrease ($16.774 million) in FY27 due to a priority to fund the Positioning Navigation & Timing (PNT) for inclusion in the C5ISR/EW Modular Open Suite of Standards Mounted Form Factor (CMFF). Remaining $0.319 million resources C2 architecture prototyping and experimentation of counter-ISR capabilities.

FY2026 plans — current year Provides prototyping, experimentation, and risk reduction activities for the Army as it continues to develop and field prototypes to close the all domain capability gap and provide C2 of counter adversarial surveillance and reconnaissance systems. Complimentary AI/ML technologies are assessed via various prototyping and ground station (FIT-C) architecture efforts. These Advanced Component Development and Prototypes efforts enable ground stations to dynamically task, receive, and disseminate data to directly support live-fire, Warfighting function system of system demonstrations and assessments, enabling wide-area, responsive, and deep-area sensing and force maneuver. Additionally, this…

FY2025 accomplishments Battle Management and Control (BMC2) and ground infrastructure continues the demonstration and validation of ground architecture, evaluating the ability to provide wide-area, responsive, and deep-area sensing required for Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) targeting and force maneuver, significantly reducing Sensor-to-Shooter (S2S) timelines. Ground architecture is evaluated through multiple assessment events including the Assured Position, Navigation, Timing and Space (APNT/S) Cross Functional Team (CFT) Campaign of Learning and Army Futures Command's Capstone Exercise. These provide a realistic operational environment to evaluate the integrated Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance…

Congressional action

Congressional marks

Committee marks on the FY2027 request. Adds and cuts are reconciled in conference before they become law.

RequestPresident's Budget
$0.3M
House NDAA (HASC)HASC
$0.3M full · +$0
Senate NDAA (SASC)SASC
$0.3M full · +$0
House Approps (HAC-D)HAC_D
$0.3M full · +$0
unresolved as of 2026-07-27. These are FY2027 authorization marks (NDAA); appropriations and the conference agreement may differ.
Who's building it

Where the FY2027 request goes

Performers named in the R-3 exhibit, resolved into industry, government-lab, and unspecified shares. Budget-justification contract funding, not obligations.

Where FY2027 funding flowsShare$M
Other / unspecified100%0.3
FY2027 request100%0.3
Program detail

Mission & acquisition strategy

The United States Army Tactical Space Strategy provides tactical land component forces with space-based capabilities required to close the top three Large Scale Combat Operations (LSCO) gaps and counter adversarial surveillance and reconnaissance systems that affect friendly maneuver forces. National, DoW, commercial space-based, and High Altitude (HA) sensor data will be integrated into army and Joint ground architectures to provide resilient communications, assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT), all domain sensing capabilities (including space, high altitude, aerial and terrestrial sensors, data transport, data fusion, data analytics), automated Processing Exploitation and…

This effort was designed to address the top 3 Army Large Scale Operations (LSCO) gaps of multi-domain deep-sensing, penetration of and disintegration of threat A2AD, and long range fires. It represents investments which will result in knowledge transfers to inform space-related capability requirements and concepts of operations that support, at a minimum, Army Campaign Plan Objectives (#7: See and Sense Farther / Multidomain Intel & Targeting, #8: Precise, Longer-Range Fires (Conduct precision strike in depth across domains), #10: Survivable and Resilient Formations, and #6: Rapidly and reliably communicate & share data (Gain & Maintain decision dominance)).

Project BX7 — Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Capability
  • Management Services
  • Product Development
  • Test and Evaluation
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Questions this page can answer
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Provenance

Cite this page

Sources
FY2027 Department of the Army RDT&E Budget Justification · Exhibits R-2 / R-3 · PE 0604035A (President's Budget PB2027) — and FY2027 NDAA committee marks, as tracked 2026-07-27.
Suggested citation
HitchAI, "Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Capability (PE 0604035A)," federal budget intelligence, PB2027 vintage. hitchintel.com/programs/0604035A
Machine access
Markdown twin /programs/0604035A.md · MCP mcp.hitchintel.combudget_get_program_element, budget_get_cong_marks