The air combat drone concept drawn by DARPA looks like a cruise missile loaded with air-to-air missiles. (Photo/DARPA)
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is responsible for the development of the U.S. military’s most advanced equipment, is now developing an unmanned fighter jet “with air-to-air combat” that could be seen as a realistic take on the Science Fiction movie “Stealth.
Defense Blog (Defense Blog) reported that DARPA’s statement said that the U.S. Department of Defense research department is starting the “LongShot” (LongShot) program, the opening bid is to develop an air-to-air weapons can be carried, and have their own targeting enemy aircraft air combat type of unmanned aircraft.
However, DARPA named the program “LongShot” may be a bit ill-considered, or too honest, because the word also means “low chance of success”.
DARPA has signed a phase 1 preliminary design contract with General Atomic, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Corporation, four companies will first produce a new type of UAV, whose function is to expand the range of engagement, improve mission efficiency and can maximize assistance to manned warplanes.
DARPA’s air combat Drones, which were painted in 2017, do not yet have the idea of an internal bomb bay.
Current air supremacy relies on advanced manned fighters to provide surprise penetration of enemy air defense positions and defeat enemy aircraft coming to intercept. Predictably, unmanned fighters like the Long Shot could serve as a vanguard to defend manned fighters from the enemy threat, thereby increasing pilot survivability.
The Long Shot program is the next phase of unmanned warfare aircraft that can use advanced air-to-air weapons to suppress a variety of enemy air units,” said Lt. Col. Paul Calhoun, DARPA program manager.”
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