Overview

• The YFQ-42A took off from General Atomics’ Gray Butte Airport near Palmdale, California, initiating flight testing less than two years after the CCA program’s launch.
• General Atomics says the prototype was built and flown in just over a year and is derived from the XQ-67A/Off-Board Sensing Station lineage, with autonomy refined on the MQ-20 Avenger.
• Anduril’s competing YFQ-44A is slated to begin flight testing soon, keeping both Increment 1 contenders on track for comparative evaluations.
• The test pipeline includes vendor-led trials, independent evaluations at Edwards AFB, and operational assessments by the Experimental Operations Unit at Nellis AFB, with a readiness unit planned at Beale AFB.
• The Air Force expects a competitive production call in FY2026 that could select one or both designs, as officials pursue affordable mass with company-indicated unit prices below $20 million.