Air Force Prepares Collaborative Combat Aircraft for First Large-Scale Exercise
The U.S. Air Force will integrate Collaborative Combat Aircraft into its Emerald Flag exercise in December, testing live end-to-end kill chains, mission autonomy, and lean sustainment alongside crewed fighters.
The U.S. Air Force’s Experimental Operations Unit will integrate Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) into a major operational push during the Emerald Flag exercise at Eglin Air Force Base in December. Marking the program’s first live end-to-end kill chain integration alongside fourth- and fifth-generation crewed fighters, the exercise represents a critical transition from technical flight testing to operational force integration. The Air Force aims to build an initial fleet of 500 CCAs by 2032, with long-term plans exceeding 1,000 platforms to scale mass and distribute combat capability across contested theaters.
Flight operations involving prime vendors Anduril Industries (FQ-44A Fury) and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (FQ-42A Vengeance) are already yielding operational efficiencies. Recent Agile Combat Employment evaluations demonstrated a reduced logistical footprint, operating at a one-to-one maintainer-to-aircraft ratio and enabling cross-functional Airmen to generate sorties and execute hot reloads within minutes. Control architecture has also matured, allowing single operators to direct mission-autonomous platforms via laptop interfaces during disaggregated operations.
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