# Initial Operational Test and Eval — Program Element 0605712F

**Program element:** 0605712F  
**Component:** U.S. Air Force  
**Appropriation:** 3600 — RDT&E, Air Force  
**Budget Activity:** 6 — RDT&E Management Support  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605712F

## Summary

U.S. Air Force requests $13.6M 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.

## Funding profile

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 14.2 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 13.7 |
| FY2027 | Request | 13.6 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 14.0 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 14.3 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 14.6 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 14.9 |

> Estimate types are not summed — the profile mixes actuals, enacted law, the request, and outyear projections.

## Congressional marks (FY2027)

| Stage | Marked ($M) | Change ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| Request | 13.6 | — |
| House NDAA (HASC) | 13.6 | +0.0 |
| Senate NDAA (SASC) | 13.6 | +0.0 |
| House Approps (HAC-D) | 13.6 | +0.0 |

> FY2027 NDAA authorization marks, as of 2026-07-27. Not appropriations or final law.

## Projects (1)

| Project | Title | FY2025 actual | FY2026 enacted | FY2027 request | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 660191 | Initial Operational Test and Eval | 14.2 | 13.7 | 13.6 | −1% |

> Projects are the summable leaves: the program element total is their sum, never added to it.

### Project 660191 — Initial Operational Test and Eval

The program element funds the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC) to conduct Congressionally mandated Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) to support major weapon system acquisition decisions beyond Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP), Milestone C, full rate production, fielding, and declaration of Initial Operational Capability (IOC). IOT&E is conducted to determine the operational effectiveness and suitability, and resolve overall mission capability, of systems undergoing research and development (R&D) efforts. This PE funds participation in Multiservice Operational Test and Evaluation (MOT&E), and Follow-on Operational Test and Evaluation (FOT&E) when the continuation of IOT&E activities passed the full rate production decision. FOT&E answers specific questions about unresolved COIs and test issues or completes areas not finished during the IOT&E. The PE funds related Operational Test & Evaluation (OT&E) activities such as conducting Continuous Operational Testing (COT), Early Influence, agile release tests, Integrated Test and Evaluation (IT&E), Operational Utility Evaluations (OUE), Early Operational Assessments (EOA), Operational Assessments (OA) and operationally realistic evaluations of advanced technologies which informs military utility determination. These tests support releases and major milestones and decision points prior to Milestone C, full rate production, fielding, or declaration of IOC. IOT&E programs are identified in three system categories: Air; Weapons; and Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR). This program is in Budget Activity 6, RDT&E Management Support because this budget activity includes research, development, test and evaluation efforts and funds to sustain and/or modernize the installations or operations required for general research, development, test and evaluation.

| Activity (R-2A) | FY2025 | FY2026 | FY2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Systems OT&E | 5.1 | 3.5 | 3.9 |
| Weapons Systems OT&E | 1.2 | 2.1 | 3.4 |
| C4ISR Systems OT&E | 5.4 | 5.6 | 5.5 |
| Combat Support OT&E | 2.6 | 2.5 | 0.8 |

> R-2A activities carry the prior, current and budget year only — no five-year plan. Coverage is partial, so count them, never total them.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibits R-2/R-3, PE 0605712F (PB PB2027); FY2027 NDAA committee marks (as of 2026-07-27).
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_program_element(pe="0605712F")`.

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