Why It Matters

The Army's effort to modernize battlefield communications faces significant planning gaps that could threaten its ability to deploy new technology across the force on schedule, according to a Government Accountability Office report.

The Army has identified approximately $3.3 billion in costs for its Next Generation Command and Control initiative in documentation supporting the president's fiscal 2026 budget submission but has not developed a detailed schedule showing which units will receive the technology by year or a full life-cycle cost estimate for the entire effort. The absence of detailed schedule and cost information increases the risk that NGC2 technologies will not be deployed to all planned Army units by the tentative fiscal 2032 target date.

Without detailed schedule and long-term cost information, the Army cannot adequately assess whether it has the time and resources it needs to meet its tentative goal for fielding NGC2.

The Modernization Challenge

The Army is pursuing two distinct efforts to overhaul how its forces communicate in the field. The first, called Command and Control Fix, is a near-term upgrade designed to eliminate large, immobile command posts that are easy to destroy. NGC2 is a longer-term effort intended to provide the Army with a mobile battlefield network.

When completed, NGC2 is intended to deliver a long-term mobile network solution for the Army. But the service has developed only short-term schedules through fiscal 2027, leaving the bulk of the deployment plan, how to equip 11 divisions and four corps by the end of fiscal 2032, without a detailed fielding schedule identifying specific units by fiscal year.

The Army is taking what GAO described as a flexible acquisition approach for both efforts, adjusting course based on user feedback, evolving market conditions and product capabilities. However, GAO found that the Army has not taken important steps to implement other key elements of an iterative business case that could position the service to assess the scalability of C2 Fix and NGC2.

The Planning Gaps

The absence of detailed schedule and cost information for NGC2 creates concrete risk. GAO found that the lack of a detailed schedule and long-term cost data limits the Army's ability to assess whether it has the time and resources needed to meet its tentative goal of fielding the full NGC2 technology stack across 11 divisions and four corps by the end of fiscal 2032.

The Army identified approximately $3.3 billion in NGC2 costs in documentation supporting the president's fiscal 2026 budget submission, but it has not completed an initial cost estimate for the life cycle of the collective effort.

GAO warned that these planning gaps risk soldiers' access to the secure and reliable communications needed for modern large-scale combat operations and limit the ability of the Army and Congress to make informed decisions about the effort.

The Bottom Line

GAO made two recommendations. First, the Army should develop a detailed fielding schedule identifying the specific units planned to receive NGC2 capabilities by fiscal year and regularly reassess the schedule as NGC2 evolves. The schedule should address how the Army will meet its tentative fiscal 2032 goal for full implementation.

Second, the Capability Program Executive Command and Control Information Network, in coordination with the deputy assistant secretary of the Army for cost and economics, should determine preliminary life-cycle costs for the collective NGC2 effort, regularly reassess those estimates as NGC2 evolves and provide an initial estimate as part of the Army's fiscal 2028 budget request.

The Department of Defense concurred with both GAO recommendations and identified steps the Army is taking to implement them.

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