General Atomics hands first FQ-42 Vengeance to Creech AFB

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has delivered an FQ-42 Vengeance uncrewed fighter to Creech AFB in Nevada, moving the US Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft programme forward. The aircraft reached the base on 18 September.

Test and evaluation personnel will operate the jet, which is intended to fly in formation with crewed fighters such as the Lockheed Martin F-35 and Boeing F-15E as work on collaborative control continues. Earlier flights involving the FQ-42 and other General Atomics air vehicles, among them the XQ-67A and MQ-20 Avenger, were carried out semi-autonomously and autonomously while human pilots in F-35s and F-22s held control.

Mike Atwood, the company's vice-president of advanced programmes, said progress on the programme had been rapid and that the air force was regularly adding new accomplishments with the type.

The FQ-42 is a fifth-generation uncrewed fighter with an internal weapons bay and low-observable features meant to improve survivability. It belongs to the manufacturer's Gambit series, a modular family designed so new systems, weapons and autonomy software can be integrated without major redesign.

After a first flight in August 2025, the aircraft won an initial production contract in June 2026. General Atomics is funding production itself while government money is finalised, which the company says avoids delivery delays.

With a new low-observable paint facility complete, the manufacturer says it is positioned to hand over six aircraft a month against air force targets, and has extra manufacturing space for further orders.