U.S. Air Force Awards CCA Drone Hardware Contracts to Anduril, General Atomics

The Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program is central to the U.S. Air Force's plan to expand its airpower with semi-autonomous uncrewed combat aircraft. The aircraft will work alongside F-35s and the future F-47 on strike, reconnaissance and other missions. The Air Force's long-term goal is to deploy about 1,000 aircraft, using an open architecture that separates airframes from mission-autonomy software to avoid dependence on a single vendor.

The U.S. Air Force announced on June 17, 2026, that the General Atomics FQ-42A and Anduril FQ-44A had both received contracts for the first three production lots. Contract values were not disclosed. The service requested $996.5 million for fiscal 2027 to begin procurement and aims to deliver more than 150 aircraft by 2030. Anduril, Shield AI and Collins Aerospace entered a six-month software evaluation, with the lead supplier to be selected in summer 2027.