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RDT&E Program Element · President's Budget PB2027

MILSATCOM Space Modernization Initiative (SMI)

PE 1206431SF·U.S. Space Force·Approp. 3620F — RDT&E·BA5 — System Development & Demonstration
FY2027 Request
$10.2M
◆ Development crest → decline
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U.S. Space Force funding falls 25% to a $10.2M request in FY2027 (down from a FY2026 peak), with nothing planned by FY2031. 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
$10.2M
▼ 25% vs FY2026
FY2026 Enacted
$13.6M
▲ 1286% vs FY2025
FY2025 Actual
$1.0M
Prior year

For fiscal year 2027, the U.S. Space Force is requesting $10.2M for MILSATCOM Space Modernization Initiative (SMI) under RDT&E program element 1206431SF, down 25% 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.

01.0FY25ACTUAL13.6FY26ENACTED10.2FY27REQUEST1.1FY280.0FY290.0FY300.0FY31
Actual Enacted Request Outyear (FYDP)
Fiscal YearEstimate TypeAmount ($M)
FY2025Actual1.0
FY2026Enacted13.6
FY2027Request10.2
FY2028Outyear1.1
FY2029Outyear0.0
FY2030Outyear0.0
FY2031Outyear0.0
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 1206431SF

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 -25% overall, which can hide much larger swings below.

Project 657104

MILSATCOM Space Modernization Initiative (SMI)

$10.2MFY2027 request ▼ 25%
FY2025 actual$1.0M
FY2026 enacted$13.6M
FY2027 request$10.2M
Product Development

The Space Modernization Initiative (SMI) evolves current and future SATCOM systems to develop a more affordable and resilient integrated enterprise capable of meeting near-term and emerging requirements. SMI will demonstrate technologies and Concepts of Operations (CONOPS) supporting the Protected Anti-jam Tactical SATCOM (PATS) family-of-systems capability that provides tactical-level military SATCOM (MILSATCOM) users protected, anti-jam SATCOM while operating in a contested environment. PATS is an integrated approach that includes the Protected Tactical Satellite Communications (PTS) and Protected Tactical Enterprise Service (PTES) programs to mitigate adversarial jamming effects by using the Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW). For this effort, SMI includes the Air Force - Army Anti-Jam Modem (A3M) to develop PTW-capable modems, providing high throughput and enhanced anti-jam capability in benign and contested environments. Finally, Global Broadcast Service (GBS) functionality will be added to the PATS modems. GBS implements a worldwide high-capacity satellite broadcast information system to provide a continuous, one-way, high-speed, high-volume flow of classified and unclassified intelligence products (full motion video, imagery, data) to garrisoned, deployed or moving forces. This program falls within the Satellite Communications (SATCOM) mission area which provides the space and dedicated ground architecture required to securely transport wideband, narrowband, tactical, and strategic satellite communications, including USSF-funded SATCOM terminals and commercial SATCOM activities.

Accomplishments / planned programs (R-2A) — prior, current and budget year only
Global Broadcast Service (GBS)▼ 25%
FY2025 actual$1.0M
FY2026 enacted$13.6M
FY2027 request$10.2M

Funds will provide for continued PTW SFF design and Critical Design Review, deliver Engineering Development Models for testing and certification, conducting Production Readiness Reviews, End Cryptographic Unit procurements, and transportable Receive Suite integration.

Read the FY2027 plan →
The whole program

MILSATCOM is funded on 3 lines across 3 appropriations

This page shows $10.2M of MILSATCOM, 21% of the program's $48.2M FY2027 request. The rest is appropriated elsewhere.

Also funded hereTypeComponentFY2027 $M
MILSATCOMProcurementSpace Force38.1
MILSATCOM System EngineeringRDT&EArmy—
MILSATCOM totalArmy, Space Force48.2

Lines whose title names the program. 24 further lines only mention MILSATCOM in their justification text — those fund something else and are deliberately excluded from the total.

Congressional action

Congressional marks

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

RequestPresident's Budget
$10.2M
House NDAA (HASC)HASC
$10.2M full · +$0
Senate NDAA (SASC)SASC
$10.2M full · +$0
House Approps (HAC-D)HAC_D
$10.2M 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%10.2
FY2027 request100%10.2
Program detail

Mission & acquisition strategy

The Space Modernization Initiative (SMI) evolves current and future SATCOM systems to develop a more affordable and resilient integrated enterprise capable of meeting near-term and emerging requirements. SMI will demonstrate technologies and Concepts of Operations (CONOPS) supporting the Protected Anti-jam Tactical SATCOM (PATS) family-of-systems capability that provides tactical-level military SATCOM (MILSATCOM) users protected, anti-jam SATCOM while operating in a contested environment.

The Space Force will utilize existing contracts to the fullest extent possible for all updates necessary. Those contracts include: GBS receive suite contracts for terminal integration; GBS architecture sustaining engineering contract for SBM updates; and an existing service level agreement with the 520th Software Engineering Squadron (SWES) for receive suite and SBM software updates. GBS Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) Small Form Factor (SFF) development to leverage the Air Force - Army Anti-Jam Modem (A3M) crypto capability, which was used to develop three receive-only, NSA TRANSEC compliant modem, to meet the C3LB mandate requiring the use of PTW for TRANSEC.

Project 657104 — MILSATCOM Space Modernization Initiative (SMI)
  • Product Development
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Provenance

Cite this page

Sources
FY2027 Department of the Air Force RDT&E Budget Justification · Exhibits R-2 / R-3 · PE 1206431SF (President's Budget PB2027) — and FY2027 NDAA committee marks, as tracked 2026-07-27.
Suggested citation
HitchAI, "MILSATCOM Space Modernization Initiative (SMI) (PE 1206431SF)," federal budget intelligence, PB2027 vintage. hitchintel.com/programs/1206431SF
Machine access
Markdown twin /programs/1206431SF.md · MCP mcp.hitchintel.com → budget_get_program_element, budget_get_cong_marks