For decades, aerial warfare has been conducted by fighters whose pilots make decisions from their own cockpits. The United States is working on a different model, in which few aircraft can Flying without anyone on board and get instructions from a pilot who flies the plane himself. The idea opens up an interesting possibility, but it also poses a challenge: how to coordinate several devices without multiplying the work of someone in control. The answer is to build aircraft capable of interpreting commands and executing them with a certain autonomy.
The US Air Force has shown how that ambition is beginning to materialize. During a demonstration in early October at Edwards Air Force Base in California, an F-22 Raptor pilot transmitted tactical instructions to a YFQ-44A Fury, an unmanned combat aircraft built by Anduril. According to an official statement released on the 16th, the device interpreted commands through its autonomous software and performed flight maneuvers and simulated combat tasks. This was not a full training under the same pilot, but rather a test with a single Fury that allowed the synergy between both aircraft to be demonstrated.
The difference between flying a plane and ordering it
The key lies in the kind of instruction Fury receives. From the cockpit of the F-22, the pilot did not act as an operator remotely handling every control of the other aircraft, but rather transmitted high-level tactical instructions via a data link. According to Air and Space Forces magazine, which includes Anduril’s statement, the Raptor sent a Updated mission plan When both devices were in flight. The Fury’s autonomous software was responsible for interpreting these cues and putting them into practice.
A US Air Force F-22 Raptor Photo: 412th Test Wing
This demo road started before the addition of Fury. In October 2025, General Atomics, Lockheed Martin and L3 Harris had already demonstrated that an F-22 could perform command and control functions over an MQ-20 Avenger, an unmanned aircraft used as a test platform. In February 2026, General Atomics and the Air Force announced another test in which the MQ-20 performed tactical maneuvers and air patrol tasks following fighter commands. This background helps to understand the current novelty: the United States is transferring already-tested capabilities to a device specifically designed for its allied air combat program.
A YFQ-44A Fury during testing at Creech Air Base, Nevada Photo: Jennifer Healy
Fury has a much broader project behind it. It is called the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) and seeks to develop semi-autonomous aircraft that can With manned fightersExpand their operational capabilities and contribute to improving knowledge of what happens during a mission. The Air Force is moving forward with two models in this first phase: the FQ-44 Fury, from Anduril, and the FQ-42 Vengeance, made by General Atomics. The YFQ-44A used in the demonstration corresponds to the development version of the first one.
The scale of the project helps understand why these tests are important beyond a specific flight. The military establishment has set a target of 500 semi-autonomous systems for combat by 2032, out of a total planned fleet of about 1,000 units, for which it did not specify an equivalent deadline. But incorporating so many devices also raises a practical question: how to coordinate them without requiring an additional pilot for each. This is where the mechanism is developed so that the same cockpit can issue orders for several aircraft.
Picture | Jennifer Healy, US Air Force (Public Domain) | 412th Test Wing (Public Domain) | Renee Blundon, US Air Force (Public Domain)
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