The Anduril YFQ-44, internally named "Fury", is an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) currently under development by Anduril Industries. The aircraft is one of the winning designs for Increment I of the United States Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program and is intended to augment crewed fighter aircraft such as the F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning, and the planned Next Generation Air Dominance fighter for air-to-air missions through manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).

Development and design

The YFQ-44, internally named "Fury", was originally designed by Blue Force Technologies as an aggressor platform to simulate high-end threats.[1] Blue Force Technologies was acquired by Anduril in 2023, and the Fury design was adapted as a submission for the U.S. Air Force's (USAF) CCA program.[2][3][4] The design was eventually selected as one of the two winners of the Increment I CCA alongside the General Atomics YFQ-42.[5]

The Fury's design as of 2023 is a fighter-like UCAV that is approximately half the dimensions of an F-16 Fighting Falcon. Its configuration consists of swept trapezoidal wings, chin-mounted inlet, a cruciform tail arrangement with stabilators and a single vertical stabilizer, and weapons mounted on external hardpoints. The aircraft is designed to fly at up to 50,000 feet (15,200 m) and Mach 0.95, and capable of pulling a maximum of 9 g, while sustaining up to 4.5 g at about 20,000 feet (6,100 m). The Fury is to be powered by a single Williams FJ44-4M turbofan engine producing 4,000 pounds-force (17.8 kN) of thrust and has a maximum gross takeoff weight of 5,000 pounds (2,270 kg).[1] The design is expected to provide the USAF with "affordable mass" to augment its crewed fighters in air-to-air missions, and its low cost, attritable nature also enables users to take greater risks with them.[6] A mockup of the design was showcased during a September 2024 USAF conference.[7]

The aircraft received its formal designation during the 2025 Air & Space Forces Association symposium. Flight testing is expected to begin in summer of 2025.[8]

Specifications (estimated)

Data from The War Zone[1]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 0 onboard
  • Length: 20 ft (6.1 m)
  • Wingspan: 17 ft (5.2 m)
  • Max takeoff weight: 5,000 lb (2,268 kg)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Williams FJ44-4M turbofan, 4,000 lbf (18 kN) thrust

Performance

  • Maximum speed: Mach 0.95
  • Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
  • g limits: +9 / −3

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Trevithick, Joseph; Rogoway, Tyler (11 September 2023). "The Rise of Fury". The War Zone.
  2. ^ Parmar, Abhinav; Stone, Mike (6 September 2023). "Palmer Luckey's defense tech startup Anduril buys autonomous aircraft maker". Reuters. Archived from the original on 8 September 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  3. ^ Decker, Audrey (23 September 2024). "Dueling robot wingmen take the stage". Defense One.
  4. ^ Insinna, Valerie (10 September 2024). "Anduril, General Atomics to showcase drone wingmen models at Air Force conference next week". Breaking Defense.
  5. ^ Tirpak, John (25 April 2024). "Anduril and General Atomics to Develop New Collaborative Combat Aircraft for Air Force". Air & Space Forces Magazine. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  6. ^ Finnerty, Ryan (19 September 2024). "USAF's first autonomous combat jets will act as air-to-air 'missile trucks' for crewed fighters". FlightGlobal.
  7. ^ D'Urso, Stefano (17 September 2024). "Anduril And General Atomics Showcase Collaborative Combat Aircraft Mockups". The Aviationist.
  8. ^ Gordon, Chris (3 March 2025). "America's First Unmanned Fighters Are Here: YFQ-42 and YFQ-44". Air and Space Forces Magazine. Air and Space Forces Association.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anduril_YFQ-44
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