The U.S. defense budget is among the most transparent military spending plans in the world, but that doesn’t mean it’s not rife with hidden meaning and secret programs. Indeed, for more than six decades, the Department of the Air Force budget has hidden billions of dollars that get funneled into secret programs in the intelligence community.
For 2027, so-called “pass through” accounts—money that funds other agencies and is never actually touched or used by the Air Force—will top $52.3 billion. That’s 13.4 percent of the total department spending plan. But proportionally, that $52.3 billion accounts for a smaller share than in past years, when it has sometimes exceeded 20 percent.
The Space Force, meanwhile, is growing so rapidly that it is poised to gain a larger share of the Department of the Air Force’s pie—more than 18 percent in 2027, if the budget is approved as submitted.
In an April 21 presentation, Pentagon officials asserted that the Department of the Air Force represented the biggest piece of the 2027 budget plan: $391.1 billion, more than any other military department. But in their own presentation, Air Force officials noted the $52.3 billion in “non-blue” funds they would never touch.
Not counting pass-through funds, the practical portion of the department’s budget is $338.8 billion, split $267.7 billion for the Air Force and $71.1 billion for the Space Force.
Department of the Air Force Budget (billions)
| Year | Air Force | Space Force | Non-Blue | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2027* | $267.7 | $71.1 | $52.4 | $391.1 |
| 2026 | $214.7 | $31.6 | $48.3 | $294.6 |
| 2025 | $184.1 | $28.6 | $45.2 | $258.0 |
* Requested
If approved, 2027 would mark the smalllest proportionate pass-through budget in memory, at 13.4 percent. At the same time, It would also mark the first time the “pass-through” exceeded $50 billion in one year. The 2026 budget requested $51.5 billion in “non-blue” funds, but Congress approved $48.3 billion, a reduction of $2.8 billion.
Meanwhile, Space Force investment is soaring. As submitted, the USSF budget accounts for more than 18 percent of the DAF’s topline, the highest level in its nearly seven-year history. Much of that is classified; the Space Force’s classified spend would reach $17.3 billion, or nearly a quarter of the service’s topline total. That’s nearly triple the $6.56 billion in classified spending in the 2026 budget.
The Air Force is likewise seeking a major injection of cash for its classified portfolio, with documents showing an increase from $48 billion in 2026 to nearly $57 billion for ’27.
Together, the Air Force’s and Space Force’s classified budgets would jump nearly $9 billion, more than twice as much as the proposed growth in secret pass-through spending, which would be $4.1 billion.
But the close ties between the two and the opaque nature of the “pass through” make it harder to assess the Department of the Air Force’s true resourcing, especially in comparison to the other military branches. Critics of the pass-through contend that continuing this practice leaves the impression that the department’s budget is larger than it really is and has resulted over time in consistently short-changing Air Force investment accounts.
“With the Air Force’s responsibilities growing exponentially in the Pacific and Europe, the Air and Space Force Association believes Congress and the public must be able to make an apples-to-apples comparison of the investment they are making in the Air Force and Space Force’s capabilities,” AFA leaders wrote in a 2024 letter to Congress.
Previous attempts to address the issue—by getting rid of the “pass through,” directing the Pentagon to make the “pass through” more obvious in its budget documents, or just studying its effects—have failed.
How the Department of the Air Force Budgets Breaks Down
| Fiscal Year | Air Force | Space Force | Non-Blue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027* | 68.45% | 18.18% | 13.40% |
| 2026 | 72.88% | 10.73% | 16.40% |
| 2025 | 71.36% | 11.09% | 17.52% |
How the Classified Department of the Air Force Budgets Break Down (thousands)
| Fiscal Year | Air Force | Space Force | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027* | $56,993,425 | $17,330,381 | $74,323,806 |
| 2026 | $48,005,713 | $6,560,796 | $54,566,509 |
| 2025 | $44,983,491 | $5,384,046 | $50,367,537 |
* Requested