U.S. Air Force Collaborative Combat Aircraft Face Off in Paris | Aviation International News

Paris Air Show 2025

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Loyal Wingmen Face Off in Paris

Anduril and General Atomics are showing their collaborative combat aircraft in full scale

Anduril and General Atomics are showing their collaborative combat aircraft in full scale — Anduril and General Atomics showed their collaborative combat aircraft in full scale at the 2025 Paris Air Show. © AIN

By David Donald • Contributor - UK

June 17, 2025

General Atomics’ XFQ-42A and Anduril’s XFQ-44A collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) are on display in full-scale form for the first time at the 2025 Paris Air Show as the two companies are vying to win a U.S. Air Force (USAF) contract. In April, the USAF downselected the companies to design, manufacture, and test production-representative uncrewed aircraft for Increment 1 of its CCA program.

Large numbers of CCAs—also referred to as loyal wingmen, adjuncts, or remote carriers—are envisioned by the USAF to support crewed fighters, including fifth-generation warplanes such as the F-35 and F-22 and the forthcoming sixth-generation F-47 Next Generation Air Dominance aircraft that Boeing is developing.

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