DARPA considers 6 new designs for uncrewed VTOL aircraft that carry weapons payloads — with test flights set for 2026

The U.S. Military could soon have new uncrewed aircraft that carry weapons and take off and land vertically. The vehicles could undergo test flights as early as 2026. 

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has announced it is moving into a new testing phase for proposed experimental aircraft in which designs will be assessed for risk and analyzed for efficiency. 

The Advanced Aircraft Infrastructure-less Launch And Recovery (ANCILLARY) program will field designs for new, uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) carrying weapons. Specifically, the project aims to deliver X-planes capable of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) like a helicopter that can operate from aircraft carriers.

"X-plane" is a classifier used by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for experimental aircraft. Past X-planes include the Bell X-1 — the first crewed vehicle to break the sound barrier in conventional flight — and the X-15, which broke records in aerospace such as previously unachievable airspeeds and the successful use of novel propulsion techniques. 

VTOL aircraft negate the need for a runway, meaning they can be launched more easily. DARPA also wants these X-planes to be capable of operating in adverse weather conditions without supporting ground crew or infrastructure, which would enable them to operate in a far wider range of battlefield environments. 

DARPA hopes these aircraft could support the U.S. Navy ships to identify vessels beyond their line of sight but also said in a 22 May press release that the U.S. Army, Air Force, Coast Guard and Special Operations CoMMAnd had registered interest in the program.

The defense and aerospace contractors bidding for the project are AeroVironment, Griffon Aerospace, Karem Aircraft, Method Aeronautics, Northrop GruMMAn and the Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky.