Pegasus Charge
New autonomous-systems programme appearing in the FY2027 DoD budget request without public technical specifications or named prime contractors.
Last refreshed: 30 April 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
What is Pegasus Charge actually buying, and which company will build it?
Timeline for Pegasus Charge
Appeared in FY2027 budget request without public technical specifications
Drones: Industry & Defence: Pentagon DAWG line jumps to $54.6bn- What is the Pegasus Charge Pentagon programme?
- Pegasus Charge is a new autonomous-systems umbrella programme that appeared in the FY2027 DoD budget request on 21 April 2026, under the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group. No technical specifications, prime contractors, or platform details have been publicly disclosed.Source: DefenseScoop
- Will the Pegasus Charge programme survive the FY2027 congressional markup?
- Unknown. The HASC and SASC will mark up the FY2027 request through May to July 2026. Because Pegasus Charge is a new programme with no disclosed specifications, appropriators are expected to demand technical justification before approving the line item.Source: DefenseScoop
- What is the difference between Pegasus Charge and Ironhorse Rebirth?
- Both are new autonomous-systems programmes listed in the FY2027 DoD budget request under the DAWG umbrella. Neither has publicly disclosed technical specifications or prime contractors; the distinction between their respective missions is not yet publicly known.Source: DefenseScoop
Background
Pegasus Charge is one of two new autonomous-systems umbrella programmes that appeared in the Pentagon's FY2027 budget request for the first time, announced on 21 April 2026. The programme is listed under the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group (DAWG) budget consolidation at an unspecified line-item level and has no publicly disclosed technical specifications, named prime contractors, or performance requirements. Its name and appropriations line are the full extent of publicly available information as of April 2026.
The FY2027 request that introduced Pegasus Charge lifted the DAWG total to $54.6 billion, a 24,100% single-cycle increase. Because Pegasus Charge and its companion programme Ironhorse Rebirth are new entries, congressional appropriators have no prior-year baseline against which to evaluate the request. The House Armed Services Committee and Senate Armed Services Committee are expected to demand technical justification during markup hearings in May to July 2026, the first opportunity for programme offices to provide public line-item detail.
The absence of technical specifications follows a pattern visible across high-priority US autonomous-systems awards, where Other Transaction Authority pools and classified annexes precede public programme descriptions. Whether Pegasus Charge covers a specific platform class (loitering munitions, Collaborative Combat Aircraft, counter-drone) or a cross-domain integration layer is not publicly known. Its significance sits in the budget line itself: it is one mechanism through which the DAWG $54.6 billion could be appropriated and disbursed.