The US Air Force has begun developing an ambitious program to replace aging fighters and bombers with modern, cheaper drones equipped with artificial intelligence. The Wall Street Journal reports this.
Unmanned jet fighters that can fly 30 feet above the ground or directly into a barrage of enemy missiles are being developed by the US Air Force to deter China.
The rising cost of existing military aircraft and advances in flight software have forced the Air Force to move to a new generation of unmanned aircraft to bolster what its leaders say is the smallest and oldest fleet since it became a separate branch of the military. in 1947,” the article says.
It is planned, according to WSJ, to put into service at least 1 thousand of the latest fighter-drones, including several hundred in the next five years. These UAVs will accompany crewed aircraft, including F-35s and B-21 bombers, as well as carry their own weapons and act as reconnaissance aircraft and airborne communications hubs.
The program to modernize the air force is called Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) and is currently estimated at $6 billion. According to Air Force specifications, the fighter-drone being developed must fly at a speed just below the speed of sound with weapons; the Pentagon will select two companies to implement the program .
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2024-03-03 20:30:00