Revolutionary Skyborg drone with artificial intelligence (AI) represents the future unmanned force

April 8, 2019
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, Ohio – Two new autonomous aircraft concepts that promise to redefine the Air Force’s unmanned fleet are moving forward. Air Force magazine reports.

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, Ohio – Two new autonomous aircraft concepts that promise to redefine the Air Force’s unmanned fleet are moving forward. Air Force magazine reports. Continue reading original article

The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:

8 April 2019 -- The latest, Skyborg, is an autonomous drone prototyping program with artificial intelligence underway at the Air Force Research Laboratory. Researchers hope to get the aircraft—expected to be cheaper than other platforms and easily replaceable—combat-ready by the end of 2023.

Air Force Acquisition Executive Will Roper revealed the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) program, which launched in October, at a conference in Washington last month. Skyborg must be able to autonomously take off and land, fly in bad weather, and avoid other aircraft, terrain, and obstacles, the Air Force said.

Although the Air Force hasn’t decided what kind of aircraft Skyborg should be, it released an artist’s concept of an oblong, winged vehicle with three wheels last month.

Related: Air Force eyes inexpensive Skyborg unmanned combat aircraft that pushes bounds of artificial intelligence (AI)

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John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics

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