CCA drones are profoundly changing the doctrine, missions, and skills expected of fighter pilots. Analysis of the human and technological challenges.
In summary
The arrival of Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), also known as “loyal wingmen,” marks a turning point in the history of air operations. Designed to fly alongside piloted aircraft, these autonomous combat drones broaden the tactical spectrum: saturation of enemy defenses, risky reconnaissance missions, electronic warfare, and targeted strikes. Their integration changes the role of the fighter pilot, who becomes the conductor of a distributed system rather than a lone actor in his cockpit. The skills required are evolving towards data flow management, human-machine coordination, strategic decision-making, and understanding the limitations of military AI. While the promised capabilities—reduced human risk, increased vectors, lower costs—are real, they require a redefinition of training, doctrines, and responsibilities. This transformation is not limited to the addition of drones, but heralds a new way of thinking about air combat, centered on collaboration between humans and machines.
The operational concept of CCAs and their place in combat aviation
Collaborative Combat Aircraft are based on a simple idea: to add several autonomous drones capable of performing complementary missions to each piloted aircraft. This logic transforms the aircraft-pilot pairing into a system of systems. As part of its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program, the US Air Force plans to deploy several hundred CCAs by 2030. The estimated unit cost is around $20 to $30 million, which is much lower than that of a fifth-generation fighter jet, but high enough to allow for technological sophistication.
These drones, such as the Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat in Australia or the American prototypes from Anduril and General Atomics, are designed to fly in formation with F-35s, F-22s, or future NGADs. They have multiple roles: reconnaissance, jamming, ground-to-air defense attacks, and direct fire support. Pilots must therefore learn to integrate vectors into their mission plans, whose flexibility is based on partial autonomy. Unlike MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) drones used in counterinsurgency, CCAs operate in contested environments, facing advanced threats, which requires instant tactical coordination.
Doctrinal change: from individual combat to distributed management
Historically, air combat emphasized individual maneuvering and pilot initiative. With CCAs, this logic is evolving toward distributed management, where the pilot directs a set of vectors with complementary roles. In a typical mission, an F-35 could pilot two or three CCAs tasked with exploring different routes, emitting jamming signals, or carrying out diversionary strikes. The pilot then becomes a coordinator, a manager of sensors and payloads, rather than just a fighter focused on his own aircraft.
This change requires new doctrines. The ability to simultaneously saturate multiple enemy radars or launch coordinated attacks depends on rapid data processing and clear orders transmitted to the machine. Rules of engagement will need to specify the extent of the drone’s autonomy: free reconnaissance over a defined area, automatic strike on a validated target, or simple sensor relay. This flexibility changes the relationship between human initiative and algorithmic execution.
The technical and cognitive skills of the future fighter pilot
Technological change is leading to a transformation in skills. Future pilots must master networked warfare, the simultaneous reading of multiple sensor feeds, and the dynamic management of semi-autonomous units. Their training will need to include an understanding of AI algorithms, their strengths and weaknesses: risks of saturation, vulnerability to decoys, uncertainties related to jamming.
Traditional training focused on close combat (dogfighting) is losing ground to human-machine coordination. New-generation simulators already incorporate scenarios in which pilots must assign roles to their drones, analyze their proposed trajectories in real time, and decide whether to execute them. The cognitive factor is becoming central: managing the mental load of multiple decisions while maintaining situational awareness.
Pilot selection could evolve: beyond physical qualities (G-force resistance, reflexes), it will be necessary to value the ability to process a massive volume of information and exercise effective digital command.
The ethical and legal implications of human-machine collaboration
The deployment of semi-autonomous combat drones raises ethical questions. Even if the pilot retains the final decision to fire, he or she depends on systems capable of proposing or executing actions at very high speed. The international debate on “significant human control” applies directly to CCAs.
Is a pilot who delegates the destruction of a surface-to-air battery to a drone still fully responsible? How much responsibility lies with the programmers and designers of the algorithms? These questions are not theoretical: they are already influencing the drafting of rules of engagement. CCAs are not fully autonomous weapons, but their integration accelerates the need for a clear legal framework.
On a tactical level, delegating to the machine means accepting that AI can decide on trajectories or jamming that are beyond the pilot’s direct control. Mutual trust between man and machine then becomes a key factor in success or failure.
Concrete examples and ongoing programs
The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat, developed in Australia, illustrates the potential. With a range of over 3,700 km, a modular payload, and a stealth airframe, it has already flown in swarm formation with piloted fighters. In the United States, the CCA program plans to integrate prototypes from General Atomics and Anduril by 2028, with a target of 1,000 drones by the end of the decade.
The United Kingdom is developing the Mosquito project as part of the Tempest program, aiming to integrate loyal wingmen into European missions by 2035. In Europe, Dassault and Airbus, as part of the SCAF, are also planning “remote carriers” to accompany the future Franco-German-Spanish combat aircraft.
These examples show a convergence: no 6th generation fighter is designed without an ecosystem of collaborative drones. The future of air combat is already being conceived as a distributed architecture, where humans pilot a network rather than a single aircraft.
Limitations and challenges still to be overcome
While the promise is strong, obstacles remain. Cybersecurity is a major concern: an adversary capable of hacking or jamming communications could turn CCAs against their own forces. Resilience to electromagnetic jamming requires mesh and redundant communication solutions.
The cost, estimated at between $20 million and $30 million per drone, remains significant. At this price, UAVs are not consumables and require extensive maintenance. Logistics must evolve to support hybrid fleets, with specific parts and regularly updated software.
Finally, pilot confidence in their drones is a cultural challenge. The current generation, trained to think in pairs or patrols, must learn to rely on an autonomous machine. The doctrinal transition will take a decade and will require appropriate training programs.
Redefining the role of the pilot in the coming decades
In a sky saturated with sensors, long-range missiles, and jamming, fighter pilots can no longer manage everything on their own. With CCAs, they become mission leaders responsible for coordinating swarms, assigning priorities, and validating strategic actions. This evolution brings their role closer to that of a remote tactical commander, assisted by AI.
The cockpit of the future will be designed as a command station: multi-stream screens, intuitive interfaces, partial automation of certain flight tasks. Pilots will remain indispensable for contextual assessment, interpretation of weak clues, and the application of human judgment. But their added value will now depend on their ability to fully exploit human-machine collaboration.
A profound change in aerial warfare
The integration of Collaborative Combat Aircraft is not only changing tactics; it is transforming the philosophy of aerial combat. The pilot is no longer a lone knight, but the hub of a network where each drone becomes a force multiplier. Victory will no longer depend solely on the speed of an aircraft or the skill of a pilot, but on the coherence between human and machine, the security of communications, and the effectiveness of algorithms. This transformation opens up a future in which the role of the pilot will remain essential, but profoundly redefined: less of an isolated combatant, more of a connected strategist.
War Wings Daily is an independant magazine.