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Fiscal Receipts

Long Range Kill Chains

Air ForceRDT&EPartial Reconciliation1203154SF

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What it is
Long Range Kill Chains (budget line 1203154SF) is a U.S. Space Force research-and-development program funded in the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Space Force account.
What changed
+$7.45B FY25→26 R-1 TOA · PB2026
Who gets it
No award linkage at high confidence.

Budget Figures

FY24 Actuals
$186.0MR-1 TOA · PB2026
FY25 Total
$244.1MR-1 TOA · PB2026
FY26 Request
$7.70BR-1 TOA · PB2026
100.0% reconciliation

$1.92M discretionary + $7.70B one-time reconciliation. Discretionary change vs FY2025 enacted: -99.2%.

FY25→26 Change
+$7.45BR-1 TOA · PB2026

Two official figures, one label— reconciled below

Fiscal Receipts uses P-1/R-1 workbook total obligation authority (TOA) as the headline figure sitewide. The workbook TOA includes budget rows (such as advance procurement) that the R-2/P-40 J-book program line excludes. How the two bases relate →

FY26 Request · $7.70B TOA − $1.92M J-book line = 7.70B (7,696.91.9 = 7,695.0)

Figures in the sentence are rounded for reading; the parenthesised arithmetic is the same subtraction in USD millions, at the precision where it closes.

FY2026 award data is a partial year — USASpending awards are reported on a rolling basis and the fiscal year does not close until September 30. why partial FY2026 data? →

Budget Trajectory
The program's 3 summary figures for FY24 to FY26, plotted in fiscal-year order so the direction of travel is readable at a glance: this line ends higher than it starts. The points are the summary cards above, not a separate derivation; the table beside the chart carries each figure with its own citation.
The program's 3 summary figures for FY24 to FY26, plotted in fiscal-year order so the direction of travel is readable at a glance: this line ends higher than it starts. The points are the summary cards above, not a separate derivation; the table beside the chart carries each figure with its own citation.FY24: $186.0MFY25: $244.1MFY26: $7.70BFY24FY25FY26
Budget trajectory: one row per fiscal year, carrying the summary figure the sparkline plots. Every figure opens its own citation.
Fiscal yearAmount
FY24$186.0M
FY25$244.1M
FY26$7.70B

All series figures: R-1 TOA · PB2026

Decade view — P-1/R-1 workbook TOA basis, shown compact in $B/$M (the workbook records USD thousands); each figure cites its own President's Budget edition
5 fiscal years of this program as published (FY2022–FY2026): a line through the actuals (filled dots), with the enacted (hollow circles) and request (diamonds) markers each edition reported. Read it for direction, not for precision — this program's actuals line rises across the span, and 1 year is a break in the line rather than a low value: an edition the program is absent from, never interpolated. The grid below is the same data as text, one cited figure per cell.
5 fiscal years of this program as published (FY2022–FY2026): a line through the actuals (filled dots), with the enacted (hollow circles) and request (diamonds) markers each edition reported. Read it for direction, not for precision — this program's actuals line rises across the span, and 1 year is a break in the line rather than a low value: an edition the program is absent from, never interpolated. The grid below is the same data as text, one cited figure per cell.FY2022 actuals — PB2024 editionFY2024 actuals — PB2026 editionFY2023 enacted — PB2024 editionFY2024 enacted — PB2025 editionFY2025 enacted — PB2026 editionFY2024 request — PB2024 editionFY2025 request — PB2025 editionFY2026 request — PB2026 editionFY22FY23FY24FY25FY26

The vertical scale does not start at zero: the baseline sits just below this program’s smallest year, so a low point on this line is not a small amount. Read the shape for direction and the grid below for the figures.

● actuals (line)  ·  ○ enacted  ·  ◇ request — gaps are editions the program is absent from, never interpolated.

Decade series values by fiscal year and President's Budget edition: one row per series (actuals, enacted, request), one column per fiscal year. Every figure opens its own citation.
SeriesFY22FY23FY24FY25FY26
Actuals$0$186.0M
Enacted$0$243.0M$244.1M
Request$243.0M$244.1M$7.70B

blank = series not published for this year; – = absent from that edition.

Asked vs spent: the PB2024 book requested $243.0M for FY2024; the PB2026 book reported $186.0M as actual total obligation authority — $57.1M below the request. 185.97243.04 = -57.07 USD millions — the compact figures above are rounded for reading.

Program Lineage

This program
1203154SF — Long Range Kill Chains

Successors (funding flowed out)

Family Funding Line

Funding chain: 1203154SF1203155SFLong Range Kill Chains

  • FY2024$243.0M
  • FY2025$244.1M
  • FY20261203154SF$7.70B1203155SF$1.06B

Description

Mission Long Range Kill Chains

In FY 2026, Project Moving Target Indicator is transferred to Program Element 1203155SF to better align efforts with the USSF mission areas. In FY 2026, Project Auxiliary Payloads was erroneously transferred to Program Element 1203609SF. This funding will be realigned back to PE 1203154SF for proper execution following enactment. The FY 2026 request for Long Range Kill Chains includes $1,916 thousand of discretionary and $1,255,000 thousand of mandatory (reconciliation) for a total of $1,256,916 thousand. The mandatory supports the Golden Dome Integration Office and requirements that can be discussed under separate cover. Further information for this reconciliation request is provided in Sections 20003 (Missile Defense) & 20009 (INDOPACOM Capabilities) of the Reconciliation Exhibit. In addition, the FY 2026 request for Long Range Kill Chains includes $6,440,000 thousands Mandatory funding in this PE under BA 5. Further information for this reconciliation request is provided in Sections 20003 (Missile Defense). This program is in Budget Activity 7, Operational System Development because this budget activity includes development efforts to upgrade systems that have been fielded or have received approval for full rate production and anticipate production funding in the current or subsequent fiscal year.

Mission Moving Target Indicator

The space-based GMTI system will replace a portion of the aging E-8C JSTARS sensing capability, based upon the Space Warfighting Analysis Center's (SWAC's) analysis of alternatives assessment completed in September 2022. Proper funding is critical to ensure this system is in place to support the warfighter before all JSTARS aircraft retire. Space-based GMTI is not a one-for-one swap for the E-8 JSTARS slated to retire, but rather an evolved weapon system that serves as the next generation moving target indicator for the warfighter. GMTI capability will be critical to tracking surface targets in Competition, Crisis, and Conflict environments. This will be accomplished from space, instead of from JSTARS aircraft which will not be capable of operating in a contested/non-permissive environment. Space-based GMTI will provide another way to harness data from the space domain and incorporate it into the secure cloud environment underpinning the ABMS to sense, make sense, and act faster than our adversaries. The Department of the Air Force will maximize partnerships with the Intelligence Community (IC) and use of mature commercial technologies to accelerate the acquisition timeline and meet the GMTI needs of the warfighter. Moved to PE 1203155SF to align with the rest of the program's budget.

Mission Auxiliary Payloads

In FY 2026, Project 67113 Auxiliary Payloads was erroneously transferred to Program Element 1203609SF. This funding will be realigned back to PE 1203154SF for proper execution following enactment. The Auxiliary Payloads project provides the additional communication relay space vehicles required to increase system access and capacity to the levels required to enable warfighters with the capability to rapidly move target data around the globe and execute long range kill chains.

Justification

Accomplishments & Planned Programs (2)

Moving Target Indicator

Moving Target Indicator

Auxiliary Payloads

Auxiliary Payloads

Budget Line Items(workbook-cited)

P-1/R-1 workbook Total Obligation Authority basis (USD thousands) · PB2026.

Exhibit R-1

AccountOrgTypeAmount
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY24 Actuals$186.0M
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY25 Enacted$244.1M
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY25 Total$244.1M
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY26 Disc. Request$1.92M
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY26 Reconciliation$6.44B
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY26 Reconciliation$1.25B
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY26 Total$1.26B
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space ForceFFY26 Total$6.44B

Budget Details(R-2/P-40 facts)

J-book detail basis (R-2/P-40, USD millions) · PB2026 — a different accounting basis from the P-1/R-1 workbook TOA above; where the two disagree, the reconciliation strip under Budget Figures shows both.

Wider than this screen — swipe the table sideways for the remaining fiscal-year columns.

ProjectAll Prior YearsFY24 ActualsFY25 TotalFY26 BaseFY26 Request
Program Element$0$186.0M$244.1M$1.92M$1.92M
671112: Moving Target Indicator$0$450.0K$839.0K$0$0
671113: Auxiliary Payloads$0$185.5M$243.3M$1.92M$1.92M

No follow-the-dollar view — this program's awards haven't been crosswalked at high confidence (flows cover 17 of 1,741 programs). why coverage is partial? →

Awards

No awards are linked to this program element at high confidence — the budget→award crosswalk only asserts links it can defend, and this line has none yet.

Lobbying Mentions

No Senate LDA lobbying filing in the tracked data mentions this program element by code or alias.

Oversight

Department-level designation (not specific to this program)

GAO lists 5 high-risk areas for DOD as a whole. That designation covers the department, not Long Range Kill Chains — no program-specific GAO finding for this line is in the ingested data. See the DOD oversight record.

Program dossier

Every sentence below carries its citation — warehouse figures open the citation panel, news claims link the cached source.

Research dossiers exist for 50 of 1,741 programs — the 50 largest fully J-book-detailed programs by FY2026 request. why no dossier here? →

What it is

  • Long Range Kill Chains (budget line 1203154SF) is a U.S. Space Force research-and-development program funded in the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Space Force account.
  • The program's Auxiliary Payloads project provides additional communication-relay space vehicles that increase system access and capacity, giving warfighters the ability to rapidly move target data around the globe and execute long-range kill chains.
  • The program sits in Budget Activity 7 (Operational System Development), the category the Space Force uses for development efforts that upgrade already-fielded systems or systems approved for full-rate production.
  • For FY2026, the Auxiliary Payloads project is funded at about $243.3 million (its Current Year amount), making it the dominant project within the program.
  • In FY2026 the Moving Target Indicator project — a space-based ground moving-target sensing effort — is transferred out of this program to Program Element 1203155SF to better align efforts with U.S. Space Force mission areas.

Why it matters

  • The program's total funding surges from $244,121 thousand in FY2025 to $7,696,916 thousand (about $7.7 billion) requested for FY2026.
  • That is a year-over-year increase of $7,452,795 thousand (roughly $7.5 billion) from FY2025 to FY2026.
  • In FY2024 the program recorded actual spending of $185,970 thousand (about $186 million), so the FY2026 request is more than forty times its recent execution level.
  • Almost the entire FY2026 request is mandatory funding: the R-1 exhibit shows a $6,440,000 thousand reconciliation request under Budget Activity 5 in this program element.
  • A separate reconciliation request of $1,255,000 thousand and a discretionary request of $1,916 thousand together make up the program's $1,256,916 thousand base total for FY2026.
  • The program's own budget narrative states that the mandatory funding supports the Golden Dome Integration Office, with further detail provided in the Missile Defense and INDOPACOM Capabilities sections of the classified Reconciliation Exhibit.
  • A Fiscal Receipts feed event flagged Long Range Kill Chains as increasing 3,053% from FY2025 to FY2026, one of the largest year-over-year swings in the budget.

Key players

  • The program is run by the U.S. Space Force, with funding drawn from the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Space Force appropriation.
  • The space-based Moving Target Indicator capability associated with the program is intended to replace part of the aging E-8C JSTARS sensing mission, based on a Space Warfighting Analysis Center analysis-of-alternatives assessment completed in September 2022.
  • The Department of the Air Force plans to maximize partnerships with the Intelligence Community and use mature commercial technologies to accelerate the moving-target-indicator acquisition timeline for the warfighter.