The U.S. Air Force conducted large-scale Nevada exercises pairing fighter pilots with Collaborative Combat Aircraft, including the YFQ-44A Fury and YFQ-42A Dark Merlin. A YFQ-44A fired an AIM-120 AMRAAM in restricted airspace — a notable milestone for an autonomous platform employing a guided air-to-air missile. The Air Force aims to field about 1,000 autonomous aircraft and recently awarded contracts to General Atomics and Anduril to accelerate CCA production.
US Fighter Pilots Train With Unmanned Combat Aircraft as Fury Fires AIM-120 in Nevada Drills
An F-35 performs flight maneuvers in events commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States in May 2026. The U.S. Air Force is training pilots to pair up with unmanned systems called Collaborative Combat Aircraft while flying the F-35 and other fighter planes. (Photo by Jesus Olarte/Anadolu via Getty Images)Anadolu via Getty Images
The U.S. Air Force staged large-scale combat exercises in Nevada that paired human fighter pilots with autonomous Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs), marking a major step toward manned-unmanned teaming in aerial warfare.
What Happened
At Creech Air Force Base and over restricted airspace in the Mojave Desert, pilots flying F-35s and other fighters practiced coordinating with multiple CCAs, including the YFQ-44A "Fury" and the YFQ-42A "Dark Merlin." During the drills, an unmanned YFQ-44A fired an AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile — a first for an autonomous platform firing a guided air-to-air weapon in these types of exercises.
Why It Matters
Integration at Scale: Commanders emphasized that these exercises were designed to integrate autonomous aircraft into combat operations quickly and in large numbers, pushing beyond prior controlled "loyal wingman" tests into more complex, multi-asset sorties.
An unmanned YFQ-44A Collaborative Combat Aircraft fires an AIM-120 weapon during exercises in secluded airspace over the Mojave Desert. (U.S. Air Force photo by Jennifer Healy)
"By integrating uncrewed systems to fly alongside our Airmen, we extend reach and increase lethality," said Gen. Ken Wilsbach, Air Force chief of staff.
The Technology
The AIM-120 AMRAAM is a compact, high-performance, beyond-visual-range missile used across U.S. fighter fleets. The Fury's use of the AMRAAM in the exercise highlights advancements in autonomous targeting, weapons control, and secure communications needed for machine-on-machine and manned-unmanned collaboration.
Production and Contracts
The Air Force has set an ambitious goal to field roughly 1,000 autonomous aircraft. In recent procurement moves, the service awarded engineering, manufacturing, and production contracts to General Atomics for the YFQ-42 and to Anduril for the YFQ-44, alongside additional awards for autonomous software and systems development.
Looking Ahead
Officials say these drills — together with growing use of unmanned surface vessels and other autonomous systems — signal a shift in how future conflicts may be fought, with mixed teams of crewed and uncrewed platforms operating together to extend reach, improve survivability, and multiply effects.
Note: All events reported were conducted in restricted airspace under controlled conditions as part of scheduled training and testing.
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