By General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.

In the race to define the future of uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAVs), General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) isn’t just talking about innovation — it’s delivering it.

With growing instability in the global security environment, no one else is positioned to deliver the capabilities the nation needs at the speed required, GA-ASI’s leader said in an interview with UAV.com.

Following the start of flight operations by GA-ASI’s YFQ-42A unmanned fighter jet, company President David R. Alexander told UAV.com he’s now seeing near-universal recognition that uncrewed systems must make up a sizable portion of the future force across all domains.

The novelty of that idea has provided openings to new entrants and even major prime contractors to push a lot of ideas forward, he said — but the nation needs these capabilities more quickly than others can deliver.

“What I also see are a lot of companies with a lot of ideas that look good in renderings or animations, but those ideas may be years from being fielded or never fielded at all,” Alexander said. “That’s where I think we’re different.

“YFQ-42A, the  collaborative combat aircraft we’re testing with the U.S. Air Force right now is not even our first unmanned jet. It’s our third. It represents more than 30 years of research, development, and testing that went into it, much of it on our own dime.”

The successful beginning of flight operations, announced on August 27, is proof that the company can move at the pace the nation needs, Alexander said.

“The results speak for themselves: YFQ-42A is flying today,” he said. “We’re mass producing it today.”

 

“Reality Check”

As GA-ASI’s global fleet of aircraft crosses 9 million total unmanned flight hours this month, predictions and debates on the growth of global UAV operations have become mainstream topics around the world.

But for Alexander, the discussion around uncrewed systems has, at times, become untethered from practical considerations.

“When it comes to who can deliver these capabilities in the quantities and at the pace the threat demands, I think we could all do with a reality check,” Alexander said.

“The question is, ‘Does X or Y company have the expertise, the track record, and the physical infrastructure today — now — to get these capabilities into production.’ You can’t get there with just one or even two of those.

“For GA-ASI, I know the answer for all three is ‘yes.’ ”

Alexander pointed to three key areas that showcase GA-ASI’s leadership in UCAV development: advanced hardware, including fully operational UCAV systems flying today; cutting-edge autonomy and sensor fusion software that enable warfighters to interpret and navigate the modern battlespace; and physical infrastructure paired with a skilled workforce capable of rapidly manufacturing these systems at scale.

• Hardware. Alexander pointed to two previous generations of GA-ASI jets as evidence the company can deliver on future UCAV requirements. The first generation, the MQ-20 Avenger®, was first flown in 2009 and is still in use by the company today as a test and development platform. The latest generation, represented by the XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station developed with the Air Force Research Laboratory, made its first flight in 2024 and is being used as a fully operational engineering model for YFQ-42A, an unmanned fighter currently being developed for the U.S. Air Force.
• Software. GA-ASI has invested heavily in advanced autonomy, building up an arsenal of over 1,000 software engineers with expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and autonomy. The investment has led to several notable accomplishments, including June’s simulated shootdown of live and virtual test targets using MQ-20 Avenger performing combat air patrol, as well as July’s autonomous collaborative engagement demonstration using Avenger and four CCA stand-in aircraft used to investigate and destroy enemy targets.
• Manufacturing. GA-ASI boasts more than 5 million square feet of manufacturing space, including advanced additive manufacturing technology that the company is using to increase its output and lower the cost of its aircraft.

Bringing It All Together

Alexander stressed that delivering real capabilities to warfighters requires seamlessly integrating hardware, software, and production processes.

“It would be wonderful if the assignment was to build a single great aircraft that meets all the requirements the customer is looking for and declare victory,” he said. “But this isn’t a science experiment.

“Look at the global security landscape: This is an urgently needed capability that must be deployed at scale.”

To make sure the company can move at the pace of the threat, GA-ASI has been fully leveraging its decades of work in UCAV development, Alexander said.

“To make sure we had an aircraft we could produce quickly and in high numbers, we made the decision early to invest our own money into the planning for YFQ-42A,” he explained. “We bought down a lot of hardware design risk for that aircraft to ensure that — from nose to landing gear to tail — we had a system that could be mass produced in the company facilities we have today.

“Then there’s the software piece. So, when you see us using Avenger or XQ-67A in kill chain or autonomy demonstrations, that’s us dialing in the software piece of this.

“That’s what I mean when I talk about the ability to bring together experience, expertise, and physical infrastructure to deliver for the customer.”

For Alexander, what sets GA-ASI apart from the pack are real aircraft, flying today, that are advancing the capabilities the U.S. and its partners will need to compete and win on the 21^st century battlefield, he continued.

“The future of unmanned combat air vehicles like CCA isn’t about concepts or promises —it’s about delivering real operational capabilities today,” Alexander said. “At GA-ASI, we’re not about imagining the future. We’re about building it.”