From more sophisticated systems like the Air Force’s collaborative combat aircraft to cheap kamikaze weapons, the drone had its heyday in 2023 — and promises, coupled with AI, to be a much bigger part of future warfighting.
Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said the service anticipates somewhere between 20-30 competitors to build the drones themselves, and that a similar number of contractors are already part of a vendor pool providing autonomous technologies.
With AI still a nascent technology, VISTA's ability to churn through flight tests could be critical for the Air Force as it looks to start a Collaborative Combat Aircraft program as early as fiscal 2024.