- The U.S. Air Force formally signaled a transition from R&D → procurement for Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA).
- A ~$1B FY2027 budget request was submitted to begin buying the first tranche of autonomous fighter drones.
- Platforms (from Anduril & General Atomics) are designed to:
- Fly alongside F-35 / NGAD
- Conduct ISR, strike, and electronic warfare
- Early estimates suggest ~30 aircraft in first buy, scaling to 100+ units.
Why this matters:
This is a watershed moment—CCA is no longer experimental. It’s becoming a program-of-record autonomous combat capability, which will reshape air dominance and cost curves.
