What project 650015 buys
ESS is the backbone for Joint All Domain Nuclear Command, Control and Communications (NC3). The system will replace Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) Strategic Satellite Communications (SATCOM) services to provide global, integrated, survivable, resilient, and dynamic ground and satellite communications for assured strategic capabilities across the conflict continuum. The ESS program underwent a resiliency architecture shift to address emerging sophisticated threats and to ensure strategic SATCOM capabilities are available to the National Command Authority (NCA), Combatant Commanders, and joint warfighters in any potential future conflict. ESS will provide the only arctic DoW strategic communication capability across the joint enterprise, and will provide worldwide secure, jam-resistant communications for strategic ground, sea, and air assets. ESS will support existing strategic user terminals in all operational environments. ESS is acquired and developed in several parallel efforts to accelerate delivery of capability to warfighters by the strategic need date in FY 2032. The ESS System includes a Space Segment (ACAT-I), Ground, User, and Integration Segment (ACAT-I equiv), and a Crypto Segment (ACAT-III). The Space Segment is a Major Capability Acquisition (MCA) program in the Engineering Manufacturing and Development (EMD) phase. The Ground Segment, also known as GRIFFON - Ground Resilient Integration & Framework for Operational NC3, is comprised of the Ground Integration and Framework (GIF), System of Systems Integration (SoSI), and Mission Software Applications. This enables a resilient and modular cybersecure architecture that bridges the gap between modern software practices and legacy user terminal capability. The GIF/SoSI and Mission Planning Software efforts are leveraging the Software Acquisition Pathway Other Transactional Authorities for rapid prototyping of ground software. The ESS Ground Framework creates cybersecure software development, integration, and operational environments utilizing agile Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) principles and onboards hosted external mission applications and services. SoSI ensures all ESS segments that are acquired in parallel, in addition to external entities, work together to accomplish the mission.
- Product Development
- Management Services
Project 650015 funding, 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. Projects carry the full five-year plan; the activities inside them stop at the budget year.
| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 0.0 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 0.0 |
| FY2027 | Request | 571.8 |
| FY2028 | Outyear | 696.2 |
| FY2029 | Outyear | 271.0 |
| FY2030 | Outyear | 646.6 |
| FY2031 | Outyear | 545.1 |
2 accomplishments / planned programs
The R-2A exhibit — the only level of the budget that describes work that has not happened yet. Activities carry the prior, current and budget year only, no five-year plan. Each describe FY2027 work in enough detail to have their own page; the rest are shown here in full. Coverage is partial across the corpus, so count activities, never total them.
The GRIFFON program will continue efforts in the Execution Phase of the Software Acquisition Pathway for integration and testing across the entire ESS architecture, to include the Ground software applications, framework, terminals, and test sites. Continue maturation of the ESS ground framework and integration prototype. Complete Systems…
Read the FY2027 plan →Continue National Security Agency (NSA) cybersecurity certification process and procedures for AVE and GOE ECUs for the ESS Space Segment and ST2. Maintain all required and appropriate Interim Authority to Test (IATT) approval letter(s) from NSA. Deliver AVE and GOE PRAs to Space Segment and MIT- LL to support ST2 development. Begin…
Read the FY2027 plan →Named performers on project 650015
Performers named in the R-3 exhibit under this project. Share is of the project's whole FY2027 R-3 total — the same denominator the program-element split uses, so the two read on one scale and will not sum to 100% when unnamed or government work is in the mix. Budget-justification contract funding, not obligations.