The Air Force‘s budget request for military space activities has increased again for FY ’06 and beyond by nearly $2 billion, and it includes a new path ahead for the Pentagon’s rocket program and a congressionally unpopular Space Radar (SR) surveillance system.

The funding boost continues an upward trend and reflects an ongoing focus on the need for modernized space systems as well as new projects, according to a senior defense official. The Air Force received additional topline, part of which went toward space efforts, the official, who asked not to be identified, said.

“Space is a critical part of our warfighting priorities and I think the budget reflects that,” the official said in a background briefing for reporters. “As a whole, I think space did very well.”

The unclassified FY ’05 Air Force space topline was $8.1 billion while the request in FY ’06 is $9.9 billion. The Navy and Army’s space programs would also be included in the space topline increase, although the defense official did not have those numbers at the briefing. The FY ’06 request of $9.9 billion is about 9.6 percent of the total FY ’06 Air Force budget, the defense official said.

Perhaps the most risky proposal in the FY ’06 to FY ’11 budget is a new approach to SR that includes a demonstration project that will be launched by FY ’08, the defense official said. Formerly called Space Based Radar, the effort was renamed to reflect a new approach that included capabilities not based in space. The FY ’06 request for SR is $226 million, with an additional $4.2 billion earmarked through FY ’11, all in research and development dollars. Officials are targeting 2015 for first launch of a satellite in the objective system.

Congress axed all but $75 million of the Pentagon’s FY ’05 SR request and derailed it from the acquisition track; lawmakers cited potentially ballooning cost and a need for more risk reduction and technology development before a full procurement gets under way. Lawmakers also shot down the earlier Discoverer II space based radar demo project in 2000.

“We did need to do a fundamentally different approach,” the defense official acknowledged. Specific cost of the demonstration project was unavailable.

If approved by Congress, the upcoming SR could include up to two satellites about one-quarter the scale of an objective system to be launched on separate rockets. The satellites would be used to prove the concepts of tracking moving ground targets from space, collaborating with airborne assets and downlinking data to both military and intelligence officials. Acting Air Force Secretary Peter Teets said last month a successful SR project must include funding pledges from the intelligence community. The defense official declined to say whether intelligence officials are jointly funding the system. “That is not a trivial matter,” the official said.

The defense official also outlined a new approach to the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program, which funds the rockets built by Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Boeing [BA]. The Pentagon requested $864 million in FY ’06 for five launches that will take place in FY ’08 (the service procures launch services two years in advance). The account earmarks $6 billion through FY ’11 for additional launches.

Included in the EELV account is $340 million requested in FY ’06 for “assured access” to space funding, including the cost of standing armies at both contracting facilities and additional fixed and infrastructure bills. That amount spiked from $177 million in FY ’05. The White House’s recent space transportation policy directed the Pentagon to fund the two providers in light of losses suffered from a downturn in the commercial market; some of those funds are included in the assured access line.

The Air Force is planning to conduct a third competition for EELV launches by the end of FY ’05, according to the defense official.

The Air Force is also continuing modernization projects for its military satellite communications programs.

Cost growth of just more than $800 million to the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite program occurs mostly in FY ’06 and FY ’07, the defense official said. The Air Force earmarked $1.2 billion for AEHF in FY ’06. Nearly $1.6 billion is included for AEHF in through FY ’11. The service plans to buy three AEHF satellites, although officials are not “closing the door” to a fourth, the defense official said.

Additionally, officials plan to continue the next-generation military satellite communications program called the Transformational Communications System (TCS). TCS proposes using lasers to transmit data with light waves dramatically faster than using radio waves like existing systems. The first launch would be delayed to the second quarter of 2013 if the FY ’06 request of $836 million is approved. The program projects costs of $10.9 billion through FY ’11. A system design review for participating contractors Boeing and Lockheed Martin is planned for FY ’06, the defense official said.

Officials are also planning for the first launch of the troublesome Space Based Infrared System High (SBIRS High) in FY ’08. The Air Force earmarked $760 million for SBIRS High in FY ’06 and projected another $3.95 billion through FY ’11.

The defense official outlined two profiles for the GPS precision navigation and timing constellation. To continue the existing GPS program, officials requested $520 million in FY ’06 and another $1.2 billion through FY ’11.

In parallel, officials are also moving ahead with the next-generation GPS system called GPS III. The Pentagon earmarked $87 million for GPS III in FY ’06. The profile swells to $1.4 billion in FY ’11 and totals $3.2 billion from FY ’07 to FY ’11. The defense official said the first GPS III satellite procurement is planned for FY ’10.

The Air Force is also continuing to mature its plans for space control, including the Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) program. The SBSS request in FY ’06 is $115 million, and first launch is set for FY ’09. That launch was delayed from 2007 due to a congressional cut and other priorities in the service.

–Amy Butler