US Air Force F-22 controls Anduril YFQ-44A drone in test flight

A US Air Force F-22 pilot took control of an Anduril YFQ-44A collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) in flight, the service said in a 16 October statement. The flight happened earlier this month from Creech AFB in Nevada.

The Raptor pilot passed high-level tactical directives to the uncrewed aircraft, which carried them out, according to the Air Force. The tasks included manoeuvres made during flight and simulated combat activity.

Data from the sortie will feed further software integration and developmental testing and will help shape future CCA concepts, the service said.

General Ken Wilsbach, the Air Force chief, said the flight showed the value of pairing crewed and uncrewed aircraft for warfighters. Testing must be frequent and learning quick, he said, so commanders get what they need when they need it.

One aim of the work is to keep CCAs from adding to the workload of the crewed fighters they fly alongside. Under that approach, the crewed aircraft issues broad mission commands and the CCA carries out the rest largely on its own.

Earlier work points the same way. In December 2025, a Boeing MQ-28A in Australia fired an air-to-air missile after receiving only a handful of instructions, from launching to being cleared to fire.

Anduril and General Atomics were awarded production contracts in June under the Air Force's CCA Increment 1 competition. Anduril is to build the FQ-44A and General Atomics the FQ-42A.