Collins Aerospace Tests 'Sidekick' Autonomy Software on Uncrewed Jet
Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, announced the successful test flight of its Sidekick mission autonomy software. The software enabled semi-autonomous flight on a YFQ-42A, an uncrewed jet platform developed by General Atomics. The flight showcased the software's advanced capabilities for Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) platforms.
- The recent test involved a four-hour autonomous flight where a ground-based human operator provided commands that the Sidekick software interpreted and executed with high accuracy. - This integration was facilitated by the Autonomy Government Reference Architecture (A-GRA), a government-owned system designed to prevent "vendor lock" and allow for the rapid integration of software from various developers onto any compliant aircraft. - The YFQ-42A platform, which first flew in August 2025, is General Atomics' offering for the CCA program and is derived from the XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station demonstrator. - The U.S. Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program aims to develop unmanned "loyal wingman" aircraft to fly alongside and augment manned fighters like the F-35 and the upcoming Next-Generation Air Dominance fighter. - The broader CCA initiative intends to field at least 1,000 uncrewed aircraft for missions including strike, reconnaissance, and electronic warfare, functioning as a force multiplier for the joint force. - The YFQ-42A is designed to carry two AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles internally and features a modular design for rapid adaptation to different mission requirements. - General Atomics is competing against Anduril Industries, whose platform is designated the YFQ-44A, in the first increment of the CCA program, with a final decision expected in 2026. - In addition to the Air Force, the U.S. Marine Corps has also selected the YFQ-42A for evaluation as part of its Marine Air-Ground Task Force Uncrewed Expeditionary Tactical Aircraft (MUX TACAIR) program.
