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Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) [USAF]

Last reviewed: 14th November 2024

Snapshot

The USAF's collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) programme aims to acquire a single or family of attritable UAVs with significant autonomous capabilities and the ability to work closely with crewed combat aircraft. These platforms will work alongside six-generation fighters; therefore, the programme falls under the USAF's Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) initiative.

In January 2024, the USAF awarded contracts to Anduril, Boeing, General Atomics, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman to design aircraft for this project. Three months later, in April, Anduril and GA-ASI were selected to advance in the CCA effort and were tasked with producing detailed designs and production representative test aircraft. The critical design review was completed in late 2024, with maiden prototype CCA flights planned for 2025.

Based on a 1,000 drone ballpark figure, Shephard estimates the programme could cost around $15 billion.

Annual expenditure

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Annual units funded

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Summary

Programme value:
$15.0 billion (Modelled)
Units required:
1000 (Modelled)
Award year:
2026
Status:
Selected
Type:
Procurement - new
Systems:
Gambit (Series) - Downselected
Fury - Downselected
MQ-28A Ghost Bat - Unsuccessful
Unit cost:
$12.0 million (Estimated)
PGO:
95% ?

Bids and suppliers

Boeing Defence Australia - MQ-28A Ghost Bat - AUSTRALIA

Boeing Defence Australia - MQ-28A Ghost Bat - AUSTRALIA

Unsuccessful

 
Supplier
Equipment Category
Subcategory
System Name
Prime Boeing Defence Australia
Manufacturer:Boeing Defence Australia
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Military UAS - fixed-wing
System Name:MQ-28A Ghost Bat
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: communication systems
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: flight control systems
System Name:TBC
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) - Gambit (Series) - USA

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) - Gambit (Series) - USA

Downselected

 
Supplier
Equipment Category
Subcategory
System Name
Prime General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI)
Manufacturer:General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI)
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Military UAS - fixed-wing
System Name:Gambit (Series)
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI)
Manufacturer:General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI)
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Military UAS - fixed-wing
System Name:XQ-67A
RTX (Raytheon)
Manufacturer:RTX (Raytheon)
Equipment Category:Missiles and rockets
Equipment Category: Air-to-air missiles
System Name:AIM-120 AMRAAM
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: communication systems
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: flight control systems
System Name:TBC
Anduril - Fury - USA

Anduril - Fury - USA

Downselected

 
Supplier
Equipment Category
Subcategory
System Name
Prime Anduril
Manufacturer:Anduril
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Military UAS - fixed-wing
System Name:Fury
RTX (Raytheon)
Manufacturer:RTX (Raytheon)
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Air-to-air missiles
System Name:AIM-120 AMRAAM
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: communication systems
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: flight control systems
System Name:TBC
Lockheed Martin - TBC - USA

Lockheed Martin - TBC - USA

Unsuccessful

 
Supplier
Equipment Category
Subcategory
System Name
Prime Lockheed Martin
Manufacturer:Lockheed Martin
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: --
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: communication systems
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: flight control systems
System Name:TBC
Northrop Grumman - Model 437 - USA

Northrop Grumman - Model 437 - USA

Unsuccessful

 
Supplier
Equipment Category
Subcategory
System Name
Prime Northrop Grumman
Manufacturer:Northrop Grumman
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: --
System Name:TBC
Scaled Composites
Manufacturer:Scaled Composites
Equipment Category:Uncrewed aerial systems
Equipment Category: Military UAS - MALE
System Name:Model 437
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: communication systems
System Name:TBC
-
Manufacturer:-
Equipment Category:C4I systems
Equipment Category: UAS: flight control systems
System Name:TBC

Additional Information

Programme Background

Requirements

The programme's requirements are based on the USAF's belief that it requires mass to compete effectively with an adversary in symmetrical warfare. However, due to budgetary restraints, this mass must be cost-effective to obtain and operate. Drones are much cheaper to produce than crewed fighters; therefore, the USAF envisages several UAVs working alongside single-crewed aircraft, such as the future sixth-generation fighter or the F-35.

Each uncrewed platform would host a different mission set, such as the ability to strike targets, conduct ISR, and conduct EW operations. Not only will this grant the squadron operational flexibility, but it would also, according to Secretary of the USAF Frank Kendall, lead to more specialised drone designs and, in theory, lower the overall unit cost, further achieving the USAF's goal of obtaining cost-effective mass.

In March 2023, speaking at the Air and Space Force Association's AFA Warfare Symposium in Colorado, Kendall stated that he and the Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen CQ Brown, had told planners to assume the USAF might acquire 1000 CCAs under the logic that two CCAs would be acquired for each of the 200 NGAD platforms and 300 F-35s. 100 drones are thought to be acquired under Incrament 1, with the 1,000 drone ballpark eyed for the future. Indeed, at the Air & Space Forces Association's (AFA's) Air, Space, and Cyber conference in September 2024, Kendall stated that the USAF was considering increasing the number of drones per crewed aircraft from two to possibly three or five.

Selection & Timeline

In addition to stating that preliminary discussions had already occurred, Kendall in 2023 stated that the CCA effort would likely begin in FY2024, with FY2023 funding already in place to "figure out exactly [how the USAF were] going to do this and prepare for the competition", according to Kendall. 

This timeline has been held. In January 2024, the USAF awarded contracts to five companies under the CCA programme. The companies selected were Anduril, Boeing, General Atomics (GA-ASI), Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman. As Shephard reported, the contract details largely remained unclear, but it was assumed the suppliers were expected to produce designs for the CCA.

Three months later, in April, the USAF announced that it had selected Anduril and GA-ASI to continue in the programme. The USAF has tasked both companies with producing detailed designs and production representative test aircraft. As noted by the USAF, the companies not selected, Lockheed Martin, Northrop, and Boeing, will continue to be part of the broader industry partner vendor pool.

In November 2024, Air Force Col. Timothy Helfrich, senior materiel leader for the advanced aircraft division of Air Force Materiel Command, stated that the USAF had finished a "critical design review for both Anduril and General Atomics", with both companies "on track", if not ahead" of a timeline that allows the force to "get operational capability by the end of the decade."

Broadly, as of late 2024, the prototyping phase is expected to see CCA flights in 2025, with drones becoming operational towards the end of the decade.

Autonomy Contracts

In July 2024, the USAF announced it had awarded contracts to five undisclosed vendors for the autonomy system that would control the CCA. Reportedly, the chosen vendors represent a mix of traditional and nontraditional defence companies. The autonomy side of the programme will follow a similar structure to that of drone makers, with a downselection occurring in the future based on performance.

Funding

The US Government appropriated $392 million for the USAF's CCA effort for FY2024. However, according to Breaking Defence, reporting in July 2024, the USAF is seeking an additional $150 million of investment in FY2024 for the project.

Related Programmes

According to Kendall, preliminary discussions with companies involved in the Skyborg and Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) programmes have already occurred, with the CCA effort falling under the NGAD umbrella. The main programme under this umbrella is the Penetrating Counter Air (PCA), an effort to acquire sixth-generation fighters for the USAF. Interestingly, there have been suggestions from senior USAF personnel that the sixth-generation fighter aircraft could be uncrewed.

Speaking to Nikkei Asia in January 2024, Kendall stated that "at some point", most likely later increments of the effort, Japan would participate in the CCA programme. According to the publication, Japanese participation would be built on an agreement on AI and aerial drones concluded by the Pentagon and Japan's Ministry of Defense in December 2023.

Bids & Suppliers

Anduril

In September 2023, Anduril acquired Blue Force Technologies and, with it, the design for the Fury, which was then pitched as a target drone. At the time of the acquisition, Anduril intended to upgrade the drone and instead pitch it towards this effort or the USMC's similar Penetrating Affordable Autonomous Collaborative Killer (PAACK-P) project. 

The pitch paid off. In January 2024, Anduril was one of the five companies selected by the USAF for the CCA. In April, GA-ASI was also selected to produce a production-representative CCA aircraft. To meet any potential CCA demand, in August 2024, Anduril announced it had raised $1.5 billion and planned to open a new factory dubbed the "Arsenal of Democracy". 

Boeing

As highlighted by The War Zone, Kendall specifically mentioned Boeing's MQ-28 Ghost Bat as one potential entrant to the CCA programme despite Boeing's withdrawal from the USAF's Skyborg programme. 

In early October 2022, the Pentagon confirmed that it had acquired an MQ-28 for research and development purposes in cooperation with the USAF. Due to this level of cooperation with the USAF, perhaps unsurprisingly, in January 2024, Boeing was selected for the CCA programme. However, the company was not selected to continue in April 2024.

GA-ASI

In January 2024, GA-ASI was selected for the CCA and was selected to produce a production-representative drone alongside Anduril in April 2024. GA-ASI confirmed in its April statement that its CCA production representative design is based upon the XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS), developed for the programme with the same name. Numerous outlets, such as The War Zone, have reported that the GA-ASI content is likely a member of GA-ASI's Gambit series.

A few months after being selected, GA-ASI began building its first CCA drone, using components made initially for the MQ-9 Reaper to speed up production.

Lockheed MartinNorthrop Grumman

Lockheed and Northrop Grumman were also selected for the CCA in January 2024. However, neither was selected in April 2024. Northrop Grumman's subsidiary, Scaled Composites, is developing the Model 437, a drone which could fit the programme's requirements.

Raytheon (RTX)

In September 2024, a Raytheon (RTX) company official confirmed that the company was working with the USAF and the related bidders to integrate the AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) onto the first increment of CCA drones.

Methodology

Unit Cost

No unit cost is known for the Fury, XQ-67A, or Gambit. However, regarding the USN's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) programme, Rear Adm. Stephen Tedford, program executive officer for unmanned aviation and strike weapons, stated at the 2024 Sea-Air-Space conference that the force's goal price was a gross unit cost of $15 million. Based on this, Shephard estimates a drone of this cost would have a flyaway unit cost of $12 million.

Quantity Required

As mentioned above, on 7 March 2023, Kendall spoke at the Air and Space Force Assoisation's AFA Warfare Symposium in Colorado. At the talk, he stated that he and the Air Force Cheif of Staff, Gen CQ Brown, had told planners to assume the USAF might acquire 1000 CCAs, under the logic that two CCAs would be acquired for each of the 200 NGAD platforms and 300 F-35s. 

As stated earlier, Kendall later stated that three to five CCAs could be acquired per crewed aircraft. On this basis, up to 2500 CCAs could be acquired by the USAF.

Contract Value

Based on the forecasted gross cost estimated above and the stated quantity, Shephard forecasts the CCA could be worth up to $15,000 million, or $15 billion.

Programme Years

The critical design review was completed in late 2024, with the first prototype CCA flights expected in 2025, before IOC at the decade's end. Based on the available evidence, Shephard estimates a 2026 contract award date with a forecasted delivery period of 2027 to 2039.

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Latest updates

Field Old Value New Value Date
Value 16140000000.0 15000000000.0 25/04/2024
Unit Cost $13,450,000 $12,000,000 25/04/2024
Contact Stage announced selected 26/01/2024
Award Year 2024 2026 16/05/2023
First Delivery 2025 2026 16/05/2023
Quantity Required 55 1000 08/03/2023
Value 887700000.0 16140000000.0 08/03/2023
Quantity Required None 55 04/10/2022
Value None 887700000.0 04/10/2022
Value Confidence None modelled 04/10/2022
Award Year None 2024 04/10/2022
First Delivery None 2025 04/10/2022
Unit Cost None $13,450,000 04/10/2022