Autonomous Drones Will Not Replace Fighter Pilots, They Will Be Their Wingmen: Collaborative Combat Aircraft are the Next Generation of Unmanned Warfighting Aircraft

This paper presents the argument that while unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have advanced significantly throughout the previous two decades, they will not be replacing human fighter pilots any time soon. Instead, UAVs are being designed to function as their wingmen. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program introduces “Collaborative Combat Aircraft” (CCAs). These semi-autonomous drones are designed to fly alongside human-piloted aircraft, like the newly announced F-47, acting as force multipliers in military aviation.

The advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and large language models (LLMs) are the driving forces behind CCAs functioning as highly capable wingmen, including increased situational awareness, enemy engagement, and onboard decision-making. Over the years, the evolution of UAVs, from the MQ-9 Reaper and RQ-4 Global Hawk, to cutting-edge prototypes like Anduril’s CCA, known as Fury, demonstrates how unmanned systems have grown in capability but have not removed the need to keep a human-in-the-loop (HITL). 

DARPA’s Air Combat Evolution (ACE) program and the AlphaDogfight Trials demonstrated the viability of AI becoming highly integrated with military aviation platforms. The culmination of the AlphaDogfight Trials resulted in an AI agent decisively defeating a highly skilled human fighter pilot in a simulated dogfight. However, limitations remain, including human trust in autonomous systems, technical challenges like hallucinations and latency in AI systems, and the ethics of migrating to a more unmanned-dominant military aviation operational environment.

The VISTA F-16 test aircraft represented critical proof-of-concept integration

of AI into present-day crewed aircraft. This platform has conducted multiple

autonomous test flights, further validating the concept of manned-unmanned

teaming (MUM-T).

This paper also presents three policy recommendations:

1. Increase Department of Defense (DoD) research, development, and funding towards the creation of the NGAD and CCAs.

2. Develop CCAs in cooperation with allied militaries to increase interoperability between platforms, mission sets, and areas of operation (AORs).

3. Continue to encourage and foster an environment of manned aircraft through the end of the century.

CCAs are poised to become the next generation of future military aviation warfare through the advancements made in artificial intelligence, combined with traditional, advanced human-pilot aircraft. UAVs, still, do not represent an era for the replacement of fighter pilots, but rather an augmentation which will enhance capabilities and ensure the United States maintains a competitive military edge amid rising geopolitical tensions. Continued research and development, cooperation, and funding will be paramount for the successful implementation of these new aircraft.