Overview

• General Atomics, Boeing, Anduril and Northrop Grumman received Navy contracts for conceptual designs, with Lockheed Martin tapped for the common control system based on its MDCX platform, NAVAIR confirmed.
• The Navy is seeking uncrewed, modular, interoperable and versatile aircraft engineered for catapult launches, arrested recoveries and deck operations on carriers.
• Navy leaders have discussed targeting roughly $15 million per air vehicle and a reusable-to-attritable employment model that flies for hundreds of hours before potential one-way use, reflecting cost and capacity priorities.
• The program builds on a Navy demonstration of its UMCS controlling a General Atomics MQ-20 Avenger using Lockheed’s MDCX autonomy, a step toward integrated carrier control of CCAs.
• The sea service is tracking Air Force progress, with General Atomics’ YFQ-42A now in flight testing and Anduril’s YFQ-44A nearing tests, as schedules and acquisition milestones for the Navy effort remain to be defined.