The Air Boogie AI system, which serves as the brain of the U.S. Air Force’s loyal wingman, has completed its first flight in a pairing with the UTAP-22. (Photo/U.S. Air Force)
Defense News reported on May 5 that the U.S. Air Force’s Skyborg AI system, which is expected to assist manned warplanes in their missions and serve as the brain of the Loyal Wingman unmanned aircraft, has completed its first flight with the UTAP-22. Skyborg, an artificial intelligence (AI) system, has completed its first flight in conjunction with the UTAP-22 drone.
The test was held April 29 at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, where a UTAP-22 unmanned tactical air platform equipped with the Skyborg system performed a series of tests during a two-hour, 10-minute flight that included demonstrating basic flight capabilities, receiving and responding to navigation commands, flying in a specific airspace designated by control personnel, and flying in the air. The UTAP-22 unmanned tactical air platform performed a series of tests during a two-hour flight that included demonstrating basic flight capabilities, receiving and responding to navigation commands, operating in specific airspace defined by personnel, and demonstrating maneuverability while adhering to aircraft performance limitations such as lift, range and speed.
Brig. Gen. Dale White, program executive officer for USAF Fighters and Advanced Aircraft, said team members were excited about the success of the test and said it was the first step in a long growth marathon for the Air Borg. The U.S. Air Force noted that this was the first demonstration of an autonomous aviation system at an Air Force field and that it will continue to integrate these UAVs into complex operational environments in the future, with the ultimate goal of the demonstration program being to fly multiple UAVs with the Air Boogie system alongside manned combat aircraft.
“Borg in the Air” is a large AI program of the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), which will not only be able to control drones on their own, but also further assist pilots in combat; the word “Borg” (Borg) is from the well-known American science fiction works The term “Borg” comes from the famous American science fiction work “Starship Troopers”, a race of people with artificial processors in their brains, all controlled by the Queen, which is very close to the concept of the U.S. Air Force controlling multiple unmanned wingmen with a single manned aircraft.
The UTAP-22 was derived from the USAF’s BQM-167A unmanned target aircraft in service as a technology verification platform for another UAV, the XQ-58A Valkyrie, from manufacturer Kratos. In addition to Kratos, the U.S. Air Force signed contracts with Boeing and General Atomics at the end of 2020, and each of the three companies will build unmanned prototypes and integrate them with the Air Borg.
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