Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective
General Atomics YFQ-42
Unmanned combat aircraft under development by General Atomics From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remove ads
The General Atomics YFQ-42 is an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) currently under development by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. The aircraft is one of the winning designs for Increment I of the United States Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program and is intended to augment crewed fighter aircraft such as the F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning, and the planned Next Generation Air Dominance fighter for air-to-air missions through manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).
Remove ads
Development and design
The YFQ-42 is a member of General Atomics "Gambit" family of UCAVs and derived from the company's XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station demonstrator built for the Air Force Research Laboratory.[1][2] The design was selected as one of the two winners of the Increment I CCA alongside the Anduril YFQ-44.[3]
A mockup of the design was showcased during a September 2024 Air Force conference; the aircraft's configuration is similar to the XQ-67A but modified for greater speeds and fighter-like maneuverability, with the airframe having an elongated fuselage with slender wings, a dorsal-mounted inlet, a single engine, V-tails, and internal weapons bay. Planned armament is two AIM-120 AMRAAMs.[4][5] The design is expected to provide the USAF with "affordable mass" to augment its crewed fighters in air-to-air missions. Its low cost nature, while not attritable, enables users and commanders to take greater risks with them.[6]
The aircraft received its formal designation during the 2025 Air & Space Forces Association symposium. Flight testing is expected to begin in 2025.[7]
Remove ads
See also
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
References
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads