The Air Force's unmanned Skyborg project will get its first flight test this summer, putting autonomous flight controls to work on a “small, but representative, high-speed surrogate aircraft.” The ultimate goal is to create a combat-ready, autonomous aircraft comparable to a fighter jet by the end of 2023.
Skyborg is envisioned as a robotic wingman for other pilots, using artificial intelligence to fly and control the aircraft and managing some combat mission tasks itself. After initial test flights, Skyborg will scale up to larger test platforms that are closer to the final airframe, according to Air Force spokeswoman Capt. Cara Bousie.