General Atomics and Anduril compete for loyal wingman bids, both awarded U.S. Air Force mass production

The U.S. Air Force has made a significant decision in its Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program, selecting General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and Anduril Industries for the mass production of "loyal wingman" drones. General Atomics will produce the YFQ-42A, while Anduril will manufacture the YFQ-44A. Both companies have been awarded contracts for the initial production phase, with a target of delivering at least 150 drones by 2030.

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This contract is not a continuation of previous contracts, but a new solicitation for companies that participated in the initial bidding.

This decision follows over a year of testing and evaluation of prototype aircraft from five companies, including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Boeing. Colonel Eric Fickel, the U.S. Air Force's program executive officer for fighter and advanced aircraft, emphasized that these new contracts are not continuations of previous agreements but represent a new solicitation and selection process.

The Air Force plans to build a fleet of approximately 1,000 CCAs, designed to operate in mixed manned-unmanned formations. These drones will possess high autonomy, capable of performing reconnaissance, electronic warfare, jamming, target search, and strike missions, operating independently with limited commands from manned aircraft. They are intended to work alongside the F-35A, F-22, and the future sixth-generation fighter jet, the F-47.

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The Air Force is adopting an innovative procurement model, separating aircraft hardware from artificial intelligence autonomous flight systems.

An innovative aspect of this procurement is the separation of aircraft hardware from the artificial intelligence autonomous flight systems. The Air Force simultaneously announced that Shield AI, Anduril, and Collins Aerospace have been selected to compete for the autonomous flight software. This phased approach aims to prevent the high upgrade costs associated with traditional military aircraft, allowing AI systems to be updated like mobile applications. The contracts were signed four months ahead of schedule, indicating the technological maturity of the selected drone designs. While specific contract values were not disclosed, the unit cost is reportedly less than one-third of an F-35 fighter, estimated to be below $30 million per aircraft.

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The unit cost is controlled within the previously set target, which is less than one-third of the cost of an F-35 fighter, or less than $30 million.