Modernizing mission planning for the nuclear triad
Why it matters
- Strategic deterrence relies on fast, coordinated mission planning
- Software modernization must preserve operational readiness
- Future missions require planning tools that adapt to changing conditions
Strategic deterrence depends on more than aircraft and weapons. It depends on the software that plans, coordinates, and adapts missions with speed and precision. For the U.S. Air Force's strategic bombers and tankers, that software is the Air-vehicle Planning System (APS), a force-level mission planning capability for the air leg of the nuclear triad.
It is run by Leidos. And the work happening today is transforming how it will support the warfighter for decades to come.
One system, one mission
APS supports U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) and is managed by the Air Force Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (PAE NC3). It plans missions for the B-52 and B-2 bombers, B61 gravity bombs, Air-Launched Cruise Missiles (ALCMs), and KC-135 and KC-46 tankers, with an eye towards next-generation platforms and weapons
"It is one of the nation's key mission planning systems for the strategic aircraft leg of the triad," said Chris Poutre, APS Program Manager at Leidos. "There are other mission planning systems out there, but we provide a campaign-level system supporting nuclear cruise missiles and force-level operations."
It’s a notable distinction. While tactical planning tools focus on individual aircraft or missions, APS gives commanders a strategic view across the entire force, timed and deconflicted both geospatially and temporally.
"If a commander is in charge of nuclear assets, APS lets them see what is happening at the strategic level, not just the tactical one," said Jai Pope, APS Deputy Program Manager.
How APS coordinates routes and aerial refueling
Pope offers a simple analogy: think of APS as Google Maps, but for one of the military's most complex planning challenges.
"We know the start and end point. The system plans routes based on rule sets, altitudes, speeds, threats, and stops, and generates a usable plan," Pope said. "It does that for bombers and air-launched cruise missiles, and it assigns the tankers to refuel them. It puts together the full plan and the reports, and if a crew needs digital files for their mission, the software produces those too."
Could it be done manually? Yes, Pope said. But what APS does in minutes would take human planners days or even weeks.
That difference, minutes versus weeks, is the difference between a force that can respond at the speed of modern conflict and one that cannot.
Modernizing without missing a beat
One of the defining challenges of APS is that it cannot afford to go offline. The system must remain fully mission-ready while simultaneously being rebuilt for the future.
The Leidos team is tackling that challenge with a pragmatic but active modernization strategy. We are adopting modern, memory-safe programming languages and technologies increasingly favored in security-critical and real-time applications, while continuing to support the legacy languages and production environments that remain essential today. We are developing edge-to-cloud deployment architectures, multi-enclave secure development environments, and exploring GPU-accelerated routing with the goal of enabling near-real-time planning.
Much of this work has implications well beyond APS itself.
"The software we are building is necessary not just for us, but for other mission planning ecosystems across the Department of the Air Force and the Navy," Poutre said. "Our edge-to-cloud prototyping and software architecture could inform the C3BM and DAF network architecture and broader JADC2 and ABMS efforts."
Pope added that even niche capabilities like GPU acceleration are opening doors. "Our need for it is specific, but the lessons learned and the context we have built could benefit other sectors."
Four decades of support for USSTRATCOM
Leidos and its predecessor companies have supported USSTRATCOM for more than four decades. That long history is built on something simple: trust.
"We’re in constant communication with our government customers. We recognize the risks and we identify ways to mitigate them," Poutre said. "We do way more than just build software. We solve problems and build solutions far beyond our immediate scope and are extremely passionate about the mission."
Pope said that openness goes both ways. "We are not interested in doing things the way they have always been done. We have empowered our team to come up with solutions. And we encourage our customer to think outside the norm too, especially as new weapons and capabilities come online."
That partnership is reinforced by Leidos team members embedded directly with operational users, supporting exercises, distributed operations, and concept of operations workshops, all with full transparency into the development process.
The engineering team behind APS
APS has grown from a team of about 10 when Leidos assumed responsibility to more than 60 today, with an unusually low attrition rate in a competitive market.
"What I am most proud of is that we have found the right balance of positive team culture and brilliant engineering," Poutre said. "The team is constantly tackling problems in ways I never would have thought of. We have given this legacy contract new life and a modern outlook."
For Pope, the proof is in the people. "Young engineers get recruited and stay throughout their careers. To hear that the program is running as well as it ever has, and to know the system is ready should it ever need to be used, that is what matters."
Introducing the next evolution of planning: ARGO
A central focus of the current APS contract is the development of ARGO, the Aircraft Routing and Geospatial Optimizer. ARGO is not an upgrade of APS. It is a rebuild designed around requirements that represent a significant evolution in Air Force mission planning needs.
"ARGO is being designed to support dynamic mission planning, using real-time data to reassess routes and adapt to changing conditions," Pope said. "The system's architecture is designed to support deployment anywhere from the edge to the cloud. It is also being developed to support multi-domain operations and streamline integration with current and future aircraft and weapons systems."
ARGO is currently planned for incremental deployment over the next four to five years, with initial development already underway. It is anticipated to support mission requirements tied to multiple Geographic Combatant Commands, sustainment operations, and USSTRATCOM strategic deterrence missions.
The present and future importance of mission planning
Both Poutre and Pope are clear-eyed about what APS represents.
"We live in a dangerous world, and this is part of the preparation," Pope said. "We hope it is never used, but we ensure it is ready. We take that very seriously."
Poutre put it more broadly. "Leidos does some genuinely interesting things across the company. Where we aim to add value is in connecting those capabilities in productive and cost-effective ways. That is what APS is doing today, and that is what we intend for it to keep doing tomorrow."
As strategic competition evolves and operational timelines continue to compress, the demand for intelligent and adaptable mission planning is expected to increase. Through ongoing modernization efforts, APS continues to support evolving mission requirements while helping inform the future of strategic mission planning.
Certain statements in this announcement constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These statements are based on management’s current beliefs and expectations and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. These statements are not guarantees of future results or occurrences. A number of factors could cause our actual results, performance, achievements, or industry results to be different from the results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, the “Risk Factors” set forth in Leidos’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 2, 2026, and other such filings that Leidos makes with the SEC from time to time. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Leidos does not undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect the impact of circumstances or events that arise after the date the forward-looking statements were made.
Key takeaways
- APS provides force-level mission planning for the air leg of the U.S. nuclear triad
- Leidos is modernizing APS while sustaining the software and environments operational users rely on today
- ARGO is being developed to enable dynamic replanning, edge-to-cloud deployment and integration with current and future platforms
