# Project FI3 — Rapid Capability Development and Maturation

**Program element:** 0605054A — Emerging Technology Initiatives  
**Project:** FI3  
**Component:** U.S. Army  
**Appropriation:** 2040 — RDT&E, Army  
**Budget Activity:** 5 — System Development & Demonstration  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A/FI3  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A

## Summary

Project FI3 — Rapid Capability Development and Maturation requests $58.1M in FY2027, 39% of the $147.9M requested for program element 0605054A, down 15% on FY2026. 6 R-2A activities decompose the request, 1 new this cycle.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 60.2 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 68.1 |
| FY2027 | Request | 58.1 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 58.8 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 59.3 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 60.0 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 60.2 |

> Estimate types are not summed. This project is one leaf of PE 0605054A; the PE total is the sum of its projects, never added to them.

## What project FI3 buys

This project funds high-priority, threat-based initiatives aimed at delivering operationally effective capabilities in the near- to mid-term. It encompasses accelerated materiel development and prototyping based on anticipated and emerging threats and opportunities, including Directed Energy; Long-Range Precision Fires; Air and Missile Defense; Cyber; Artificial Intelligence; Autonomy; Robotics; Signals Intelligence (SIGINT); Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and Counter-UAS (C-UAS); and other high-priority emerging threat areas. The project expedites the delivery of resilient combat materiel capabilities to the Warfighter, supports the Army modernization strategy, and accelerates transition to Programs of Record. Activities include rapid prototyping and assessment of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS), Government-Off-The-Shelf (GOTS), and Non-Developmental Items (NDI) to reduce integration timelines. The effort may also include partnering with industry to identify operationally relevant solutions to high-priority problem sets, enabling rapid design iterations, modernization of existing systems, and agile, cross-cutting prototyping that supports Army and Joint capability requirements. Funds may also facilitate the acceleration of critical capabilities to counter urgent threats and may include acquiring specialized support or limited-quantity assets. Efforts incorporate digital engineering and model-based system design (MBSE) activities to reduce technical, schedule, and integration risks and ensure early synchronization with Programs of Record. Prototyping activities may involve rigorous software testing, payload integration, architecture development, autonomy-enabled behaviors, advanced sensing, human-machine interfaces, and safety-related tasks that mitigate operational risk across contested environments.

**R-3 lines of work:** Management Services; Product Development; Support; Test and Evaluation.

## Activities (R-2A) — 6

| Activity | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 | Move | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid Technology and Capability Delivery | — | — | 38.4 | new | [a1](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A/FI3/a1) |
| Organizational Expenses | 18.6 | 18.1 | 19.5 | +8% | [a2](https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A/FI3/a2) |
| Selective Propagation APS Radar (SPAR) (Formely known as WiSPR) | 4.7 | 2.5 | 0.1 | −96% | — |
| Human Machine Integrated Formation (HMIF) | 36.5 | 25.0 | — | −100% | — |
| Operationalizing Hybrid Electric - Ground Vehicles | 0.0 | — | — | — | — |
| Concept Prototyping | 0.5 | — | — | — | — |

> 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.

### Rapid Technology and Capability Delivery — NEW START

Develop, prototype, and integrate advanced technology solutions addressing operational gaps. Conduct operational user evaluations and field-based assessments of technologies in areas such as advanced sensing, ground and air autonomy, unmanned platforms, resilient communications architectures, contested-environment electronic warfare, and…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A/FI3/a1

### Organizational Expenses

Sustain enterprise support services including installation access, facilities coordination, IT and network services, cybersecurity, and software licensing. Maintain acquisition, legal, and program management support needed to execute prototyping, contracting actions, and transition activities. Provide administrative, financial…

Full year-by-year narrative: https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605054A/FI3/a2

### Selective Propagation APS Radar (SPAR) (Formely known as WiSPR)

**FY2027 planned work.** Funding supports contract close out procedures, transitioning SPAR prototypes, data, and technical documents to our designated transition partner.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Funding decrease due to the program transitioning from prototype development and testing, to its conclusion and transition to a program of record.

**FY2026 plans — current year.** The government will conduct tests of Selective Propagation APS Radar (SPAR) at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland. These tests will verify that the prototype radar system meet all project requirements and specifications before it transitions to a program of record.

**FY2025 accomplishments.** Fabricate and assemble the prototype radar system according to the design and engineering specifications. Test the prototype radar system to ensure it meets the project requirements and specifications.

### Human Machine Integrated Formation (HMIF)

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Funding decrease due to the completion of HMIF Increment 1.

**FY2026 plans — current year.** Continues the development and fielding for Armored and Infantry Formations. HMIF is designed to enhance Soldiers' decision-making capabilities by leveraging machines to provide additional information. This is achieved through the integration of ground and air systems, enablers, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), and a variety of payloads from existing programs of record or those in development and transitioning to programs of record. To ensure the successful issuance to the unit, several activities will be undertaken, including rigorous testing, software productization, payload integration, training package finalization, and other related tasks. These activities are essential to mitigate risks associated with enabling capabilities such as common architecture, communications and network capabilities, and safety risks that may hinder operational employment. HMIF Increment 1 (Security and Reconnaissance) success in delivering reconnaissance capabilities will inform the suppression capabilities being developed, ensuring program continuity, extensibility and scalability.

**FY2025 accomplishments.** Human Machine Integrated Formation (HMIF) accelerates the fielding of a robotic formation in order to leverage machines to offload risk and provide Soldiers with additional information for decision making for Armored and Infantry Formations. HMIF formations will include ground and air systems and enablers to aid in the human decision-making process to find, fix and engage enemy targets. RCCTO HMIF prototype development supports existing and future robotic capabilities by mitigating risk associated with enabling capabilities such as the common architecture, communications and network capabilities and mitigation of safety risks hindering operational employment. In addition to ground platforms, HMIF will be integrated with UAS, enablers, and a variety of payloads from existing capabilities or developed and transitioned to capability-based portfolios.

### Operationalizing Hybrid Electric - Ground Vehicles

**FY2025 accomplishments.** Continuation of Hybrid Electric Vehicle prototyping efforts for Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) to validate hybrid electric technologies by Soldiers in extended operational environments. JLTV prototypes will complete build, integration, and vendor testing.

### Concept Prototyping

**FY2025 accomplishments.** Continues the Family of Bidirectional Tactical Inverter (FoBTI) efforts from FY 2024 to build and test full-scale operational prototypes with delivery to the government fourth quarter of FY 2025.

## 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/0605054A.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Army RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-2A/R-3, PE 0605054A project FI3 (PB PB2027).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0605054A")`.

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