CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. — The United States Air Force has taken delivery of its first two Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) prototypes at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, marking a critical operational transition in the integration of autonomous, uncrewed platforms alongside crewed tactical fighters. The aircraft—comprising Anduril Industries’ YFQ-44A Fury and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ YFQ-42A Vengeance—were delivered to the newly established Experimental Operations Unit (EOU) under Air Combat Command (ACC).
The arrival of the prototype airframes initiates a comprehensive operational experimentation phase aimed at refining concepts of operations (CONOPS) for Manned-Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T). Operating alongside fifth-generation (F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II) and next-generation combat aircraft, the EOU will evaluate how semi-autonomous “loyal wingmen” can generate combat sorties from distributed, austere forward bases under Agile Combat Employment (ACE) doctrine.
The deliveries follow rapid development milestones achieved earlier in mid-2026, including live-fire missile integration testing with the AIM-120 AMRAAM on the YFQ-44A and large-scale ACE exercises. The evaluation program at Creech AFB will directly shape unit organization, logistics, maintenance architectures, and tactical software algorithms required for full-rate serial procurement and operational fielding under CCA Increment 1.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: USAF COLLABORATIVE COMBAT AIRCRAFT (CCA) INCREMENT 1
* Program Objective: Fielding affordable, semi-autonomous, jet-powered uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAVs) to augment crewed fighter formations as force multipliers (“affordable mass”).
* Assigned Operating Unit: Experimental Operations Unit (EOU), Air Combat Command (ACC), Creech Air Force Base, Nevada.
* Delivered Prototype Platforms:
* Anduril Industries YFQ-44A Fury: Single-engine, high-subsonic (Mach 0.95) stealth-designed uncrewed fighter airframe built for high-G maneuverability, open-architecture avionics, and modular payload integration.
* General Atomics YFQ-42A Vengeance: Low-observable, single-engine uncrewed fighter derived from the XQ-67A / Gambit core chassis, featuring internal weapons carriage and high-subsonic flight profiles.
* Command & Autonomy Architecture: Open Mission Systems (OMS) architecture utilizing AI-driven autonomous flight control and human-on-the-loop tasking from airborne pilots or ground control stations.
* Primary Combat Roles & Payloads:
* Air-to-Air Escort & Missile Carriage: Internal/external station integration for AIM-120 AMRAAM beyond-visual-range missiles to act as “missile trucks” for crewed strike packages.
* Standoff Sensing & EW: Forward-deployed sensor node capabilities (AESA/IRST) and non-kinetic electronic warfare (EW) / jamming suites.
* Employment Doctrine: Integrated into Agile Combat Employment (ACE) operational frameworks to evaluate rapid sortie generation, austere footprint logistics, and distributed operations.
