The Department of the Air Force conducted live-fire testing of a YFQ-44A Collaborative Combat Aircraft, firing an AIM-120 weapon at a digital target in secluded airspace over the Mojave Desert. This event is part of a deliberate, phased test progression that began with inert carriage evaluations earlier this year. The initial inert weapons captive carry flights focused on collecting in-flight data to verify the aircraft’s handling. Subsequent evaluations validated the data link integration between the aircraft and the weapon system, ensuring operator commands were executed precisely by the platform in a simulated environment. A foundational principle of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program is the retention of human oversight. CCA will not autonomously employ weapons.
“This live-fire test is an important next step in the development of Collaborative Combat Aircraft. We’re one step closer to delivering capabilities to the warfighter,” said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Ken Wilsbach. “.”
“Moving from inert carriage earlier in the year to this weapon release demonstrates program maturity, allowing us to validate our digital integration models with actual data. These tests provide operational validation that Collaborative Combat Aircraft can execute the weapon employment sequence autonomously within pilot-defined parameters, accelerating capability delivery to the warfighter,” said Gen. Dale White, Department of War direct reporting portfolio manager for Critical Major Weapon Systems.
The live-fire test was performed in coordination with the 412th Test Wing’s Air Dominance Combined Test Force, a team consisting of active-duty military, government civilians, and government contractors, who worked to refine and validate the models required for a safe live-fire execution. This latest milestone continues the rapid pace of developmental testing for safe and effective CCA operations. The Air Force’s CCA program continues to move with pace and break traditional procurement molds to field combat-ready, semi-autonomous systems that will extend reach, awareness and survivability of American airpower in contested environments. The decision to release any weapon system remains exclusively with a human operator, who maintains command and control of the platform at all times.
The U.S. Air Force’s first two Collaborative Combat Aircraft are fighters, the first uncrewed aircraft to carry such a designation, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin announced in a keynote address at the AFA Warfare Symposium on March 3 2025. General Atomics’ CCA will be called the YFQ–42A and Anduril Industries’ CCA will be dubbed the YFQ–44A. Under Air Force naming conventions, Y designates prototype, F means fighter, and Q means unmanned. Once a prototype moves into production, the Air Force would drop the Y from the prefix. The first flight occurred on 31 October 2025. On 17 June 2026, the Air Force announced it had selected both the Fury and General Atomics’ YFQ-42 for an initial production contract, with a combined 150 FQ-44s and FQ-42s to be built by 2030.
