RDT&E Program Element · President's Budget PB2027

Defensive CYBER Tool Development

PE 0605041A·U.S. Army·Approp. 2040 — RDT&E·BA5 — System Development & Demonstration
FY2027 Request
$3.5M
Army · RDT&E
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U.S. Army requests $3.5M 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. CECOM leads the industry work.

FY2027 Request
$3.5M
▼ 2.5% vs FY2026
FY2026 Enacted
$3.6M
▼ 14% vs FY2025
FY2025 Actual
$4.2M
Prior year

For fiscal year 2027, the U.S. Army is requesting $3.5M for Defensive CYBER Tool Development under RDT&E program element 0605041A, down 2.5% 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.

04.2FY25ACTUAL3.6FY26ENACTED3.5FY27REQUEST3.6FY283.6FY293.6FY303.6FY31
Actual Enacted Request Outyear (FYDP)
Fiscal YearEstimate TypeAmount ($M)
FY2025Actual4.2
FY2026Enacted3.6
FY2027Request3.5
FY2028Outyear3.6
FY2029Outyear3.6
FY2030Outyear3.6
FY2031Outyear3.6
Where it sits

Acquisition lifecycle

This program is funded in RDT&E Budget Activity 5 — System Development & Demonstration.

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

1 project rolls up into PE 0605041A

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 -3% overall, which can hide much larger swings below.

Project XU3

Tactical DCO-I

$3.5MFY2027 request ▼ 3%
FY2025 actual$4.2M
FY2026 enacted$3.6M
FY2027 request$3.5M
Management ServicesProduct DevelopmentSupportTest and Evaluation

TDI is a software only program that pre-configures DCO applications to allow local and remote Cyber defenders the ability to conduct cyberspace surveillance and maneuver against an adversary traversing within the tactical network. The TDI capability includes: 1) Mission Protection: Ability to automate deployment of DCO tools to protect the virtual server environment of the Command Post Computing Environment. 2) Discovery/Counter-Infiltration: Ability to auto detect multiple virtual cyber threats and facilitate the mitigation/denial of adversarial actions. 3) Cyberspace Support/Readiness: Allow global and regional cyberspace defenders to assist units with countering advanced persistent threats. TDI follows a five-year, Information Technology (IT) Box construct to deliver capability over time, based on approved requirements. In IT Box (FY 2023-2027), TDI will develop Capability Releases (CR) (CR 1 - CR 12) to implement TDI software change activities and updates to provide value to Brigades to ASCCs. CR 1 collated and aggregated TDI data from various echelons and presented it into rolled-up status dashboards reflecting various roles and responsibilities. CR 2 integrated Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response and with Big Data Platform to initiate alignment with the Army's tactical data fabric efforts. CR 3 and CR 4 leveraged Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning models generated from BDP and implemented it at the tactical edge. CR 5 and CR 6 supported capabilities and technologies to address emerging cyber threats and techniques, tactics, and procedures. FY 2027 funding in the amount of $3.519 million provides for the software enhancements and maintenance/patching of the TDI software to ensure continued operability and security posture.

Accomplishments / planned programs (R-2A) — prior, current and budget year only
Development Engineering▼ 7%
FY2025 actual$2.4M
FY2026 enacted$1.8M
FY2027 request$1.7M

FY2027 planned work FY 2027 funding provides for the software enhancements and maintenance/patching of the TDI software to ensure continued operability and security posture.

FY2026 to FY2027 change Decrease due to economic assumptions.

FY2026 plans — current year FY 2026 funding supports the completion of development engineering and integration of CR 7, CR 8, and CR 9 including development engineering to collate and aggregate TDI data from various echelons; convergence with Tactical Data Fabric to align with Army Data Strategies, and implement Security Operations, Automated Response. This will include updated security artifacts needed to process the Security Impact Assessment and maintain an Authority to Operate.

FY2025 accomplishments FY 2025 funding supports the completion of development engineering and integration of CR 2, including development engineering to collate and aggregate TDI data from various echelons; convergence with Tactical Data Fabric to align with Army Data Strategies, and implement Security Operations, Automated Response (SOAR). This will include updated security artifacts needed to process the Security Impact Assessment and maintain an Authority to Operate. In addition, development and integration efforts will begin for CR 3.

Systems Test and Evaluation▼ 2%
FY2025 actual$1.1M
FY2026 enacted$0.7M
FY2027 request$0.7M

FY2027 planned work FY 2027 funding provides for the Cyber security testing of the TDI software to ensure continued operability and security posture.

FY2026 to FY2027 change Decrease due to economic assumptions.

FY2026 plans — current year FY 2026 funding provides for the completion of developmental testing and operational testing and cybersecurity testing of TDI three CR 7, CR 8, and CR 9 capability to support deliveries by end of FY 2026.

FY2025 accomplishments FY 2025 funding provides for the completion of developmental testing and operational testing and cybersecurity testing of the TDI CR 2 capability to support delivery in 4QFY2025.

Training Development▼ 1%
FY2025 actual$0.3M
FY2026 enacted$0.3M
FY2027 request$0.3M

FY2027 planned work FY 2027 funding provides for the updates to TDI software to ensure continued training compliance.

FY2026 to FY2027 change Decrease due to economic assumptions.

FY2026 plans — current year FY 2026 funding provides for the development of the support package updates to include verification/ validation, software user manuals/technical manuals and virtual training in support of CR 7, CR 8, and CR 9 deliveries in FY 2026.

FY2025 accomplishments FY 2025 funding provides for the development of the New Equipment Training (NET) support package to include verification/ validation, software user manuals/technical manuals and virtual training in support of TDI CR 3 delivery in FY2026.

Systems Engineering/Management▲ 6%
FY2025 actual$0.4M
FY2026 enacted$0.8M
FY2027 request$0.9M

FY2027 planned work FY 2027 funding provides for the engineering and management support to the TDI program.

FY2026 to FY2027 change Increase due to economic assumptions.

FY2026 plans — current year FY 2026 funding provides for program office staff (matrix and contractor) continued program execution support, development, engineering, and to perform duties necessary to plan and execute activities and milestone events leading up to CR 7, CR 8, and CR 9 deliveries in FY2026.

FY2025 accomplishments FY 2025 funding provides for program office staff (matrix and contractor) continued program execution support, development, engineering, and to perform duties necessary to plan and execute activities and milestone events leading up to CR 2 delivery in 4QFY2025.

Congressional action

Congressional marks

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

RequestPresident's Budget
$3.5M
House NDAA (HASC)HASC
$3.5M full · +$0
Senate NDAA (SASC)SASC
$3.5M full · +$0
House Approps (HAC-D)HAC_D
$3.5M 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.

CECOM
$1.7M · 47%
Software Development
CACI; CECOM
$0.9M · 24%
Systems Engineering/Management
Where FY2027 funding flowsShare$M
Industry primes100%3.5
FY2027 request100%3.5
See CECOM's full federal contract ledger members
Program detail

Mission & acquisition strategy

TDI is a software only program that pre-configures DCO applications to allow local and remote Cyber defenders the ability to conduct cyberspace surveillance and maneuver against an adversary traversing within the tactical network. The TDI capability includes: 1) Mission Protection: Ability to automate deployment of DCO tools to protect the virtual server environment of the Command Post Computing Environment. 2) Discovery/Counter-Infiltration: Ability to auto detect multiple virtual cyber threats and facilitate the mitigation/denial of adversarial actions.

The Milestone Decision Authority, approved the TDI Materiel Development Decision on 13 April 2018, designating Tactical DCO Infrastructure as an Acquisition Category (ACAT) III program. In July 2019, the MDA approved an execution strategy based on a tailored defense unique software intensive acquisition approach and designated the Full Deployment Decision as the entry point into the acquisition life cycle. The FDD was approved on 30 September 2019. On 23 November 2021, the MDA re-designated TDI an ACAT IV program based on cost and low risk and complexity, and delegation MDA to the Project Manager (PM) Mission Command.

Project XU3 — Tactical DCO-I
  • Management Services
  • Product Development
  • Support
  • Test and Evaluation
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Questions this page can answer
How does the FY2027 request compare with FY2026, and what does the five-year plan show?What did the FY2027 NDAA committees do to this request?How is the FY2027 request split between industry and government performers?In plain terms, what is this program element for and how is it being acquired?

This page carries the budget justification and the NDAA marks — nothing else. For what CECOM has actually been obligated, the ledger is at hitchintel.com/vendors; for live solicitations, hitchintel.com/opportunities. Both are member surfaces.

Provenance

Cite this page

Sources
FY2027 Department of the Army RDT&E Budget Justification · Exhibits R-2 / R-3 · PE 0605041A (President's Budget PB2027) — and FY2027 NDAA committee marks, as tracked 2026-07-27.
Suggested citation
HitchAI, "Defensive CYBER Tool Development (PE 0605041A)," federal budget intelligence, PB2027 vintage. hitchintel.com/programs/0605041A
Machine access
Markdown twin /programs/0605041A.md · MCP mcp.hitchintel.combudget_get_program_element, budget_get_cong_marks