Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall intends to experience the technology of the military branch's future fleet by riding in the cockpit of an aircraft operated by artificial intelligence. He spoke about the future of air warfare being dependent on autonomously operated drones and aims to have over 1,000 AI-operated drones in the Air Force. Kendall plans to board an F-16 converted for drone flight later this spring.
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told members of the U.S. Senate on Tuesday that he plans to ride in the cockpit of an aircraft operated by artificial intelligence to experience the technology of the military branch’s future fleet . Kendall spoke before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee’s defense panel on Tuesday, where he spoke about the future of air warfare being dependent on autonomously operated drones .
There will be a pilot with me who will just be watching, as I will be, as the autonomous technology works,' Kendall said. 'Hopefully neither he nor I will be needed to fly the airplane.' Last month, the Pentagon said it was looking to develop new artificial intelligence-guided planes, offering two contracts for several private companies to compete against each other to obtain.
The companies bidding for the contract include Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, General Atomics and Anduril Industries. Cost-cutting is one of the elements of AI that appeals to the Pentagon for pursuing the project. In August 2023, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said deployed AI-enabled autonomous vehicles would provide 'small, smart, cheap and many' expendable units to the U.S. military, helping overhaul the 'too-slow shift of U.S. military innovation.
He also said the new drone fleet will likely be cheaper than having new manned jets created. The goal is to have the drones cost about a third or less than the $20 million it costs to build an F-35 fighter. Peter Aitken of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
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