Purpose 

The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Joint Interagency Field Experimentation (JIFX) team will host the fourth quarterly JIFX event at Camp Roberts from 10 – 14 August. All technologists seeking a fail-friendly collaborative experimentation environment are encouraged to submit proposals.

What is JIFX?

"JIFX is unlike any other exercise because it enables experimenters to design and execute experiments with very low overhead, avoiding the bureaucracy of many exercises. Despite the freedom, key elements of the exercise (e.g., air ops, spectrum management) are executed better than most exercises." – Past JIFX Participant

 

JIFX promotes experimentation in alternative methods to enable rapid technological development by cultivating a community of interest and hosting broadly scoped quarterly collaborative field events. JIFX enables DoD, US government, and allied stakeholders to identify, influence, and accelerate early-stage technology development that address national and collective security challenges.

 

By utilizing the space at the NPS Field Experimentation Laboratory at Camp Roberts, JIFX offers ample open space for ground experimentation, a range, an advanced Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) site, lake and ocean testing capability, and over 40 square miles of restricted air space with a 15,000 foot ceiling for unmanned aerial system experimentation. In addition, the event offers opportunities to receive feedback from government stakeholders, as well as adversarial radio and cyber assessments provided by the Joint Vulnerability Assessment Branch.

 

For over twenty years NPS field experimentation has served as a testbed that accelerates and de-risks emerging technologies. From testing of early predators drones in the 1990s to the development of mission-critical systems like Institu’s ScanEagle and Persistent System’s high-bandwidth mesh networks, the program has accelerated the maturation of numerous defense and commercial technologies.

 

JIFX Timeline

 

22 May 2026 to 29 June 2026 – JIFX 26-4 Submissions Open: Experimenters submit proposals for their JIFX 26-4 experiments. Any technologists conducting flight operations must submit NLT 17 June.

30 June 2026 to 10 July 2026 – Government Review: The NPS JIFX team will review experiment proposals to ensure the experiments can be supported by the NPS Field Experimentation Laboratory. Experimenters are reminded to complete all parts of their proposal submission in order to attend.

After 10 July 2026 – Path Forward: Subsequently, experimenters will participate in four weekly coordination calls to ensure that they are fully prepared to complete their experimentation. These calls cover gate access procedures, locations, shipping addresses for large equipment, and much more.

How to Participate

1. Submit an experiment proposal on the JIFX website.
2. Flyers who have not submitted flight paperwork to JIFX in the past year will need to submit additional forms with their proposal.
3. Participants using a Radio Frequency (RF) device as part of their experiment and planning to transmit must have one of the following which may take a couple of weeks to obtain:
4. A Part 15 certification on the device which will have an FCC ID for the unlicensed band
5. A FCC license/Special Temporary Authority (STA) which is granted to Non-Government Operators or a DD1494/JF-12 which is granted to Government Operators.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact The Naval Postgraduate School JIFX Team: npsfx@nps.edu

Experimentation, Technology, Defense, Collaboration, Innovation

https://nps.edu/web/fx