The U.S. Air Force has taken a decisive step in its Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program, narrowing down a competitive field to focus on the contributions of two key players: defense startup Anduril Industries and renowned drone maker General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI). In a strategic move to bolster America’s air superiority, these firms are tasked with transitioning CCA concepts from the drawing board to tangible, advanced combat drones.
Breaking away from traditional defense contractors, the Air Force’s selection underscores a forward-looking mindset geared towards rapid innovation and deployment. Anduril and General Atomics edged out industry giants — Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman — all of whom remain in the broader industry partner vendor pool to vie for future contracts.
Within this dynamic arena, GA-ASI is propelling forward with its Gambit family of drones, while Anduril leverages its acquisition of Blue Force to put forward the Fury drone. Brian Schimpf, CEO and Co-Founder of Anduril, encapsulates the momentousness of the opportunity: “There is no time to waste on business as usual. With the CCA program, Secretary Kendall and the Air Force have embraced a fast-moving, forward-looking approach to field autonomous systems at speed and scale.”
David Alexander, President of GA-ASI, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing his company’s longstanding commitment to unmanned systems and its focus on producing the CCA aircraft at scale.
Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall highlights the rapid progress and the vital collaboration with industry that has propelled the CCA initiative forward, while Assistant Secretary Andrew Hunter underscores the role of industry expertise in advancing the program.
These autonomous drones are slated to serve as “loyal wingmen” to fifth- and sixth-generation manned fighters, exemplifying a new era of manned-unmanned teaming concepts. Designed for modular flexibility, the CCAs are envisioned to provide affordable fighter capacity while maintaining robust operational impact, even in scenarios where some losses are sustained.
The program’s future also opens avenues for international collaboration, with potential Foreign Military Sales sparking interest among global partners keen on interoperability and collective defense capabilities.
“The CCA program redefines the future of aviation and will shape the USAF acquisition model to deliver affordable combat mass to the warfighter at the speed of relevancy,” said Mike Atwood, Vice President of Advanced Programs for GA-ASI.
“Throughout our 30-year history, GA-ASI has been at the forefront of rapidly advancing unmanned aircraft systems that support our warfighters,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander following the announcement. “The USAF is moving forward with GA-ASI due to our focused commitment to unmanned air-to-air combat operations and unmatched UAS experience, ensuring the production of the CCA aircraft at scale to deliver affordable combat mass for the warfighter.”
Relevant articles:
– Air Force picks Anduril, General Atomics for next round of CCA work, Breaking Defense, 04/28/2024
– Air Force Picks Anduril And General Atomics To Build And Test Collaborative Combat Aircraft, The Aviationist, Thu, 25 Apr 2024 10:59:55 GMT
– US Air Force picks Anduril, General Atomics for CCA program, defence-blog.com, Thu, 25 Apr 2024 11:32:36 GMT
– Air Force Advances Collaborative Combat Aircraft Program with Anduril and General Atomics, Inside Unmanned Systems, Thu, 25 Apr 2024 16:24:27 GMT