Air Force’s Autonomous Wingmen Take Flight

The U.S. Air Force is accelerating its push into next-gen autonomous combat drones, partnering with Anduril and General Atomics to build robotic wingmen capable of flying alongside manned fighters through heavily defended airspace. Designed for high autonomy while remaining under human command, these drones—FQ-42 and FQ-44—will extend fighter range, boost survivability, and take on dangerous missions. With billions in funding and software development contracts awarded to six companies, the Air Force is betting big on these systems to maintain air superiority against global rivals and adapt to future warfare. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/8b2d05138fe53e32