Isolated Personnel Survivability and Recovery

Abstract

This Program Element contains two projects tasked to provide Air Force aircrew updated survival equipment to assist in their recovery in the event they become Isolated Personnel (IP). Project 65412B (Isolated Personnel): The Isolated Personnel Survival and Flight Equipment (IPSAFE) program develops, and fields updates to aircrew survival kits to support climate specific equipment and aims to increase the ability for an IP to evade and survive in operational environments where rapid extraction is not possible. Project 654522 (CSAR EMD): The Next Generation Survival Radio (NGSR) program is an Air Force led development effort to replace the aging legacy Combat Survivor Evader Locator (CSEL) handheld radio for the entire Joint Force. NGSR plans to deliver communications capability supporting the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) mission to locate, authenticate, and communicate with Joint forces who become isolated. The NGSR program plans replace legacy satellite communication and encryption methods to deliver secured end-to-end communication and locate and recover downed aircrew/special operations personnel. This program element may include necessary civilian pay expenses required to manage, execute, and deliver weapon system capability. The use of such program funds would be in addition to the civilian pay expenses budgeted in program elements 0605827F, 0605828F, 0605829F, 0605831F, 0605832F, 0605833F, 0605898F, 0606398F. In FY23 0.850M was expended for civilian pay expenses in this program element, and in FY24 0.900M is forecasted for civilian pay expenses in this program element. The total cost of the CSEL Next Generation Survival Radio Rapid Prototyping Middle Tier of Acquisition effort is 208.1 million, including RDT&E and procurement of prototype units. The CSEL NGSR RP program is not fully funded across the Future Years Defense Program. The Department of the Air Force is assessing all options to address the funding shortfalls for MTA programs including additional funding in a future budget request, performance trades based on technical maturity, or transition to alternative pathways. This program is in Budget Activity 5, System Development and Demonstration (SDD) because it has passed Milestone B approval and is conducting engineering and manufacturing development tasks aimed at meeting validated requirements prior to full rate production.

Document Details

• Document Type: R2 Budgetary Justification
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2025
• Source ID: 0207279F_5_3600_PB_2025
• Change Summary Explanation: FY23 funding reduced by 18.290M to support higher Air Force priorities. FY25 funding will continue the development of the NGSR HHR device and MUOS BLOS integration efforts.
• Service Agency Name: Air Force

Entities

Organizations

• United States Air Force

Tags

Readers

• Civilian Systems Systems Program Capability Development and Upgrade Support Activity Expense and Pay Management.

Technology Areas

• Space