What the FY2027 request buys
Verbatim from the R-2A exhibit for project 0386 of PE 0604320M. This is the budget justification's own description of work that has not happened yet — the one thing no other level of the budget carries.
Modernize Communications & Networks: - Initiate integration of commercially available cross-domain solutions to securely share tactically relevant, real-time sensor information across different security levels. Strengthen Littoral & Expeditionary Capabilities: - Initiate development and testing of unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) logistics prototypes focused on autonomous resupply, CASEVAC, and mobile sustainment missions in contested environments. - Initiate fielding of expeditionary sustainment kits with additive manufacturing capabilities. Provides forward-deployed units with modular repair kits and on-site part production to reduce downtime and increase resilience. Integrate Artificial Intelligence & Data Fusion: - Continue integration and experimentation of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to significantly enhance target recognition, survivability, and weapon-to-target pairing for the Marine Corps. Initial investments will focus on portable solutions for intelligence and fire support data fusion. - Expand integration of multi-domain capabilities. Funds tactical mesh networking, AI-enabled targeting solutions, and resilient C2 nodes to support unmanned systems. - Continue integration of commercially available cross-domain solutions to securely share tactically relevant, real-time sensor information across different security levels. - Continue integration of Large Language Model (LLM) Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology into the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Surveillance (CAC2S) v3 systems at Air Control Training Squadron (ACTS) to both advance the technology and improve Marine training and education. Autonomy: - Develop and Integrate Advanced Small UAS Capabilities. Continue to sustain fielded First-Person View (FPV) drone systems to inform operational feedback while focusing on developing and prototyping critical upgrades. Funding will support the rapid development of advanced Ground Control Stations (GCS), the maturation of software for enhanced autonomous navigation and C2 integration, and the creation of innovative training methodologies for testing and evaluation. - Accelerate Prototyping and Demonstration of One-Way Attack (OWA) Systems. Expedite the development and operational demonstration of the Low-Cost Unmanned Aerial System (LUCAS) family of systems. This initiative transitions a promising S&T concept into a rapid prototyping and experimentation effort to mature the system for potential future fielding. The funding increase from FY26 to FY27 is essential to conduct the following efforts: - Demonstrate scalable manufacturing and reduce prototype costs by refining manufacturing processes, identifying cost-reduction opportunities, and demonstrating the potential for scalable production. Initial prototyping aims to validate that per-unit costs can be driven down to the $70K range in larger quantities, a key performance parameter for the system's viability. - Mature system integration via rapid prototyping by supporting the iterative research, development, and testing required to integrate LUCAS prototypes into a cohesive digital kill web. This includes developing and experimenting with software interfaces to automate sensor data transfer, testing integration with C2 systems, and demonstrating a common operating picture for small units. This prototyping effort is critical to mitigating risk and maturing the technology for the sensor-to-shooter workflow. - Develop and test a complete experimental system package. This includes iterating on the designs for GCSs, Ground Support Equipment, antennas, launchers, and inert training warheads to create a viable system for operational assessment. - Develop and refine training and employment concepts through rigorous operational experimentation. This involves creating draft operator/maintenance manuals, testing virtual training simulators, and conducting New Equipment Training (NET) with select fleet units to gather feedback and inform the final system configuration and future doctrine.
Funding increase from FY26 to FY27 accelerates the rapid prototyping and operational demonstration of One-Way Attack (OWA) systems, a critical effort to mature a distributed, low-cost lethal capability for the warfighter. It will also sustain and modernize fielded FPV drones, develop unmanned ground logistics prototypes to improve operational reach, and field expeditionary sustainment kits to enhance unit self-sufficiency in contested environments.
FY2026: the year under way
Prior-year accomplishments and current-year plans from the same exhibit. Context for the FY2027 plan, not a series — an activity partitions its project exactly in the request year, but can under-cover it in earlier years.
Modernize Communications & Networks: - Completed prototype development and deployment of low-cost, resilient communication systems using Proliferated Low Earth Orbit (PLEO) satellites. Continue experimentation to validate applications for Special Information Warfare (SIF) operations and improve positioning accuracy. Strengthen Littoral & Expeditionary Capabilities: - Completed prototype development of new technologies for transporting supplies in coastal and Pacific environments. - Completed experimentation with unmanned maritime deployment capabilities to enhance operational reach and efficiency. Integrate Artificial Intelligence & Data Fusion: - Initiated integration and experimentation of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to significantly enhance target recognition, survivability, and weapon-to-target pairing for the Marine Corps. Initial investments will focus on portable solutions for intelligence and fire support data fusion. - Initiated integration of commercially available cross-domain solutions to securely share tactically relevant, real-time sensor information across different security levels. - Initiated integration of Large Language Model (LLM) Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology into the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Surveillance (CAC2S) v3 systems at Air Control Training Squadron (ACTS) to both advance the technology and improve Marine training and education.
Three years, and no five-year plan
An R-2A activity publishes the prior year, the current year and the budget year. The FYDP outyears exist at project and program-element level and are deliberately absent here rather than inferred. Estimate types are colored and never summed into one figure.
| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 67.8 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 13.2 |
| FY2027 | Request | 120.7 |
This activity is 96% of project 0386's FY2027 request and 96% of PE 0604320M's. In the request year the activities under a project sum to it exactly; in the current year they under-cover it in about 9% of cases, so an activity's delta can legitimately exceed its parent's and the two must not be compared row to row.
3 activities in project 0386
Every R-2A line of this project, largest FY2027 request first. Linked where the activity has enough of its own narrative to carry a page; the rest are shown in full on the project page.