The Air Force has put inert weapons on its new uncrewed fighters for the first time and plans to conduct live weapons tests later this year. Those steps come as the service is moving to bring its new drone wingmen into service more rapidly than ...
General Atomics
First, General Atomics dubbed its YFQ-42A Collaborative Combat Aircraft "Dark Merlin," consistent with the Air Force's tradition of naming attack aircraft after birds of prey. A few hours later, Northrop Grumman announced it is calling its YFQ-48A offering “Talon Blue.”
The Air Force has a new X-plane: The X-68A LongShot from General Atomics is an air-launched drone intended to carry additional air-to-air munitions. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has been developing LongShot since 2021, and announced on Feb. 17 that flight testing could begin “as early as the end of 2026.”
The Air Force is working with Collins Aerospace and Shield AI to develop the software Collaborative Combat Aircraft will use to fly missions alongside manned fighters, the service revealed Feb. 12—and drone-maker General Atomics was quick to announce it has already flown its YFQ-42A aircraft with Collins’ system.
An F-22 pilot controlled an MQ-20 drone from the fighter’s cockpit last month, General Atomics announced Nov. 17—a preview of the Air Force’s vision for Collaborative Combat Aircraft.
Collaborative Combat Aircraft Missions Come into Focus By John A. Tirpak Air Force Secretary Troy Meink is leaning toward a less costly, less sophisticated concept for Increment 2 of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) autonomous fighter escort program. Yet it...
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. has flown a second YFQ-42A Collaborative Combat Aircraft, stepping up the pace of testing for the new uncrewed fighter escort. The company also announced “Gambit 6,” a fresh variant in its CCA family meant for air-to-ground missions.
In announcing its Navy Collaborative Combat Aircraft contract, General Atomics has provided some clues as to where the service is heading with its version of an armed, autonomous fighter escort. It will likely be quite different from the Air Force version.
The first flight of the Air Force’s YFQ-44 collaborative combat aircraft, which is being developed by Anduril Industries, will likely be delayed because of the ongoing government shutdown, the company’s founder said.
The key to the longest-range kill chains is to shorten the distance data has to travel by collating and processing it as close as possible to the place it is generated, a panel of industry experts and executives said at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber ...
Anduril Industries will fly its YFQ-44A Collaborative Combat Aircraft drone for the first time soon, and that flight will be semi-autonomous, officials said at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference.
The Air Force announced the first flight of General Atomics’ YFQ-42A on Aug. 27, a major milestone in the service’s effort to build semi-autonomous drones that can fly alongside manned fighter jets.