The future of air combat is being forged in the Nevada desert as the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) Experimental Operations Unit pushed the boundaries of semi-autonomous technology during a recent Agile Combat Employment exercise at Creech Air Force Base.
The multi-day event highlighted CCA operations in a realistic operational environment, testing uncrewed platforms and moving the force-multiplying aircraft from sterile test environments into the hands of warfighters. The exercise was designed with a primary goal of building the foundational tactics, techniques, and procedures that will define how CCA are integrated into the force.
Air Force Chief of Staff General Ken Wilsbach stated:
“Air superiority in today’s increasingly contested environments requires the rapid fielding of affordable mass. CCA are essential to this effort. By integrating uncrewed systems to fly alongside our Airmen, we extend reach and increase lethality.”
Throughout the exercise, the Experimental Operations Unit generated multiple sorties demonstrating reliability and extended range; integrated with manned platforms in the local airspace to project power across distributed battlefields; and simulated scenarios that will inform future requirements for the platform.
Members from the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center observed the event as part of a new, rapid operational testing procedure.
Brigadier General Jesse Friedel, AFOTEC Commander, stated:
“Our test teams can continuously use these warfighter-run exercises to gather and analyze data that aids in informed CCA fielding decisions well ahead of the normal process to deliver combat capability when needed by our Air Force and the Nation.”
Operating CCA across different locations is a significant learning objective in itself, challenging teams to adapt and operate with the agility required in a contested environment. Throughout the exercise, operators worked to integrate advanced autonomous capabilities, a key step toward achieving the program’s vision of effective human-machine teaming.
Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Jensen, Experimental Operations Unit Commander, added:
“This exercise was about getting the systems into the hands of the warfighter. We are focused on operating CCA outside of a traditional test environment so we can continue to learn, inform, and rapidly iterate.”
The CCA program, which has moved from concept to flight testing in less than two years, is designed to be a pathfinder for acquisition transformation. By leveraging competition and embedding operators into the development process from day one, the Experimental Operations Unit is accelerating the delivery of combat-ready, uncrewed airpower.
General Wilsbach concluded:
“The exercise was not only a test of technology but a testament to the warfighters who are actively shaping CCA development. The lessons learned at Creech will directly influence how the Air Force integrates these cutting-edge concepts into future combat ops.”
