The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.

The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.

The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.

The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.

The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.

The Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat at MidAmerica Airport, Illinois. Boeing is using the MQ-28 to experiment UCAV-related technology, and the aircraft may find further use as tactics, techniques, and procedures testbeds. (Janes/Zach Rosenberg)

The US Air Force (USAF) is to set up an experimental squadron in 2024 to experiment with force structure in advance of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) acquisition, Thomas Lawhead, the service's assistant deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, told at a Mitchell Institute talk on 15 November.

“We'll start up in an experimental [operations] unit beginning next year that really paws into, how do we actually go about operating our CCAs?” Lawhead said.

The CCA is to be an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed to fight in near-peer conflicts. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall revealed earlier in the year that the service intends to purchase 1,000 CCAs to fly alongside advanced fighters.