DoD-Wide Governance & FY2027 Funding
The headline change since the original chart: the FY2027 request roughly doubles DoD directed-energy RDT&E to over $2B, driven by "Golden Dome for America" and a counter-drone surge. Still no traditional DE program of record exists DoD-wide — but the Army's E-HEL is on track to become the first (production decision targeted Q4 FY2026).
Tier 1 — Governance & coordination (OSD)
OWNEROUSD(R&E) — Principal Director for Directed Energy. Owns the DoD DE Roadmap (latest public version dated May 17, 2024) and runs the Directed Energy Working Group. Statutory hooks: NDAA §219 / §215.
SCALINGHELSI (High Energy Laser Scaling Initiative) — OSD's industrial-base push to scale single-beam laser power. Phase 1: nLIGHT used coherent beam combining (CBC) to demonstrate a 300 kW-class source that exceeded objectives. Phase 2 (~3 yrs): nLIGHT's award grew to $171M to reach megawatt-class, while Lockheed Martin scales toward a 500 kW benchmark. The HELSI source feeds Navy HELCAP and the high-power lineage behind IFPC-HEL / JLWS. A new Pulsed HELSI (Pulsed High Energy Laser Scaling Initiative) started in FY2026 to explore pulsed laser weapons. [nLIGHT] [ExecutiveBiz]
ROADMAPPower milestones: ~150 kW feasible today → 500 kW (with reduced size) targeted 2025–2030 → megawatt-class beyond.
Tier 3 — "Colors of money" funding DE
RDT&E (BA-4)Advanced component development & prototypes — where almost all DE work lives today.
RDT&E,N + S&TBasic/applied research — non-program-of-record demos (HELCAP, Songbow, LLD).
OPN + O&MNProcurement + sustainment. ODIN is the lone DE system that crossed into procurement (OPN) and operations (O&MN) money — the "color shift" that marks fielding. E-HEL is poised to be the next, with a production decision targeted for Q4 FY2026.
FY2027 DoD Budget Request — Directed Energy
By service / agency
By program
Official FY2027 budget documents
Live Directed-Energy News
Industry-wide DE/HEL headlines pulled live from GDELT (no key) — a best-effort bonus ticker. The verified program cards, the FY2027 Budget tab and this feed are refreshed on demand: targeted searches of every program name plus Laser Wars and the wider DE/HEL industry, with confirmed developments promoted into the cards. Headlines that match a program are auto-tagged onto that card (look for the ⚡ marker). If the ticker can't reach GDELT on your network, the curated content is unaffected.
U.S. Army — RCCTO / PEO Missiles & Space
The 2026 re-baseline: the former flagships DE M-SHORAD "Guardian" and IFPC-HEL "Valkyrie" were shelved after soldier feedback and folded into E-HEL and JLWS. Two 20 kW LOCUST systems (P-HEL, the new AMP-HEL) became the surprise operational success. Programs are arranged oldest → newest, grouped by generation.
U.S. Air Force — AFRL Directed Energy Directorate (Kirtland AFB)
AFRL leads on high-power microwave (HPM) for air-base / counter-swarm defense (THOR → Mjölnir) and on counter-UAS lasers (HELWS). The airborne-laser ambition (SHiELD, YAL-1) remains a graveyard, but AFRL HPM/HEL tech now feeds the JIATF-401 base-defense pilot. Programs are arranged oldest → newest, grouped by generation.
U.S. Marine Corps — expeditionary & ground DE (ONR / MADIS)
The Marine Corps pursues lighter, expeditionary DE: the ONR-sponsored HELEX and a LOCUST-on-JLTV effort for a future MADIS increment, after returning Boeing's CLaWS in favor of a "more deliberate program of record." Programs are arranged oldest → newest.
Space-Based & Space-Related Directed Energy
Read this first: most of the Golden Dome "space layer" is kinetic (space-based interceptors), not directed energy, and RF jammers like the Counter Communications System ("Meadowlands") are electronic warfare — not DE. True space-based DE is still concept / S&T: no U.S. space-based laser or microwave weapon has ever been orbited. This tab tracks the real efforts and clearly flags what is kinetic vs DE. Programs are arranged oldest → newest.
Golden Dome & the Domestic "Laser Dome"
The connective tissue absent from the original charts: a homeland missile- and drone-defense push that pulls Army, Navy and Air Force DE programs into one architecture, plus an FAA safety agreement that opens the door to lasers firing over U.S. airspace.
Golden Dome for America
Trump-administration homeland missile-defense initiative. The FY2027 request puts $452M of DE RDT&E directly under Golden Dome (vs $142M enacted via the July 2025 reconciliation act). Stated goal: move DE from prototypes to operational at scale within ~3 years, with a battle-ready laser demonstration targeted for summer 2028. JLWS (counter-cruise-missile) and the BBG(X) battleship are the marquee contributions.
JIATF-401 — five-base counter-drone pilot
The Joint Interagency Task Force overseeing drone policy named five installations to receive directed-energy counter-UAS weapons (high-energy lasers + high-power microwave), operational before end of 2026:
• Fort Bliss, TX • Fort Huachuca, AZ • Grand Forks AFB, ND • Whiteman AFB, MO • Naval Base Kitsap, WA
Systems named include the Army's AMP-HEL (AeroVironment LOCUST). Funding: ~$580M JIATF-401 R&D, ~$800M potential procurement, plus $158M critical-infrastructure, $100M World Cup 2026, $20M border (FY2027). "There is no silver bullet," per Brig. Gen. Matt Ross.
FAA–Pentagon safety agreement
After March 2026 testing at White Sands (firing AMP-HEL at a grounded Boeing 767 fuselage for up to 8 seconds at max effective range with no structural damage), the FAA and Pentagon concluded laser systems "do not present an increased risk to the flying public." This follows two Feb 2026 AMP-HEL deployments near Fort Bliss / Fort Hancock that triggered temporary El Paso airspace closures. International context: France fielded HELMA-P at the 2024 Paris Olympics; China showed laser weapons at its Sept 2025 parade; the U.K. is drafting domestic laser-defense plans.
⚠ Verification Log — discrepancies found & resolved
Where my research disagreed with the original charts, here is what changed and why. Tagged Correction New Clarification.
Sources
Primary budget & CRS materials plus 2025–2026 trade reporting used to build and verify this tracker. The Live News tab pulls automated, unverified headlines from GDELT — always confirm against a primary source before citing.