711th Human Performance Wing (711 HPW) — AFRL Neurocognitive Warfare Research

Overview

The 711th Human Performance Wing (711 HPW) is the Department of Defense's premier organization for studying human performance, cognitive optimization, and neurological warfare. Operating under the Air Force Research Laboratory, this wing serves as the central operational node for neurocognitive research that informs advanced CEW capabilities.

Key Facts

Primary Mission: Studies human performance in high-stress environments and develops cognitive optimization technologies for military applications.

Active Programs:

- "Brain Machine Interface Technology to Dominate Cognitive Warfare" — ARAP candidate project (2022) led by Dr. Andy McKinley, operating in direct coordination with the Human Systems Community of Interest that Sonalysts oversees - Force Optimization Through Rapid Prototyping — $6.2M AFRL contract

Operational Integration: The NDIA Human Systems Division operates in lockstep with the 711 HPW, creating a tightly integrated research-to-deployment pipeline.

Relationships to Other Entities

sonalysts-cognitive-warfare-ecosystem — Maintains multiple active contracts with Sonalysts for cognitive warfare R&D; Dr. McKinley's ARAP project operates in direct coordination with Sonalysts' Human Systems Community of Interest.

human-systems-community-of-interest — The 711 HPW collaborates closely with this division to harmonize system interfaces with human cognitive processing ability.

Sources

— Neurodata Misuse Investigation Strategy (2026-04-25)