Collaborative combat aircraft

The principal application is to elevate the role of human pilots to mission commanders, leaving AIs as "loyal wingmen" to operate under their tactical control as high-skill operators of relatively low-cost robotic craft.[4][5][6]

CCAs can perform other missions as well,[7] as "a sensor, as a shooter, as a weapons carrier, as a cost reducer".[8]

Although a CCA will be a fraction of the cost of a manned fighter, they would not be considered expendable or even vulnerable to attrition. A CCA would have sufficient intelligence and onboard defence systems to survive on the battlefield. US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall has described them as remotely controlled versions of targeting pods, electronic warfare pods or weapons carriers to provide additional sensors and munitions; to balance affordability and capability,[9][10]

US CCA programs include the USAF Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program.[11] The US Navy and USAF plan to be able to control the CCAs and NGADs of either service.[12][13][14] The Air Force plans to spend more than $6 billion on its Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) programs over the next five years.[15]

XQ-58A Valkyrie unmanned combat aerial vehicle

Heather Penney has identified five key elements for the proactive development of autonomous loyal wingmen, remote pilots of UAVs and pilots flying separately in manned aircraft (also called crewed-uncrewed teaming, or manned-unmanned teaming).[16][17][18]

1. Create concepts that will maximize the strengths of both CCA and piloted aircraft working as a team.
2. Include operators in CCA development to ensure they understand how they will perform in the battlespace.
3. Warfighters must be able to depend on CCA autonomy.
4. Warfighters must have assured control over CCA in highly dynamic operations.
5. Human workloads must be manageable.

DARPA AlphaDogfight Trials (ADTs),[4] 20 August 2020

The General Dynamics X-62 VISTA is a modified F-16 which can fly autonomously, with a test pilot to take over if necessary

Most UAVs are remotely piloted, but an AI program piloting a Collaborative combat aircraft would need a mission commander for crewed-uncrewed teaming. —Heather Penney.[17][18] In 2020, DARPA AlphaDogfight established that AI programs that fly fighter aircraft will overmatch human pilots.[19][20] The NGAD[21][22] is anticipated to use loyal wingmen (CCAs).[23][24][8] Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall envisions these uncrewed aircraft as performing parts of a larger mission;[11] CCA development can be conducted in parallel with NGAD development, which has to take into account a larger set of requirements.[8] Up to five autonomous CCAs would operate with an NGAD.[11]

Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) will test their Skyborg manned-unmanned programs such as Autonomous Air Combat Operations (AACO),[25] and DARPA will test its Air Combat Evolution (ACE)[7] artificial intelligence program.[26] The System for Autonomous Control of Simulation (SACS) software for human interface is being developed by Calspan.[26]

DARPA's Longshot is an air-launched UAV meant to extend the range of a mission[27] and reduce the risk to manned aircraft, which could then remain at standoff range; if Longshot were to use Air Combat Evolution (ACE),[7] missiles launched from that Longshot could more effectively select targets.[28] On March 6, 2023, DARPA chose General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) to carry out the design of the air-launched Longshot drone through Critical Design Review (CDR); a LongShot would itself carry an AMRAAM or Sidewinder missile, which greatly extends the range of these missiles.[29] In this way, an F-15EX or similar 4th-generation fighter can greatly increase their survivability, when armed with a LongShot.[29] GA-ASI is developing a core package (Gambit) for the CCA market.[30]

On 9 December 2022 the Air Force Test Pilot School tested its General Dynamics X-62 VISTA with 2 different AI packages.[25] By 16 December 2022 the X-62 Vista had flown eight sorties using ACE, and six sorties using AACO, at a rate of two sorties per day.[25][31][32] Six F-16s from Eglin AFB will be fitted with autonomy agents, to establish the foundation of the Collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) program.[33]

A CCA is estimated to cost between one-half and one-quarter as much as an $80 million F-35.[34] US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall is aiming for an initial fleet of 1,000 CCAs. As elements of a crewed-uncrewed team, two CCAs could be teamed with an NGAD or F-35, say two for each of the 200 NGAD platforms, and two for each of the 300 F-35s, in order to work out concepts to integrate them into the service,[35] but the full inventory could be twice that size.[36]

The 26th Secretary of the US Air Force listed CCAs among his top seven priorities for the FY2024 budget request to its Chief of staff:[8]

The RAF in the UK has been developing the Loyal Wingman concept since 2015, with the Spirit Mosquito technology demonstrator flying in 2020. Programme funding was cancelled in June 2022 because the Ministry of Defence felt that it was better spent on less ambitious advances.[37]

Boeing Australia is leading development of the MQ-28 Ghost Bat CCA for the RAAF, with BAE Systems Australia providing much of the avionics.[38]