Fox Business’ Max Gaulden has exclusive coverage of Northrop Grumman’s new autonomous combat drone, Project Talon, on “Varney & Co.”
future of air combat One critical component may be missing: the pilot.
FOX Business was exclusively invited to Northrop Grumman’s unveiling of its next-generation autonomous fighter jet, dubbed “Project Talon.” Its purpose is to serve as a “loyal wingman” for fighter jets that fly as teammates during combat missions.
“Autonomous aircraft have the ability to perform missions completely independently, which clearly frees up manpower and allows warfighters to focus on other tasks,” said Tom Jones, Northrop Grumman’s president of aviation systems.
Northrop Grumman’s next-generation autonomous fighter jet “Project Talon.” (FOX Business Network)
The fighter is modular and can perform a variety of missions, from air-to-air missiles to bombs. Their versatility is impressive, but what makes them possible? Aircraft type Particularly attractive to customers is the price.
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“The aircraft we have today is really designed for what the Air Force calls affordable mass,” Jones said from Scaled Composites’ unassuming hangar in Mojave, about 90 minutes north of Los Angeles. Scaled Composites is a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman.
“The concept behind Affordable Mass is to create a capable platform, which incorporates all the brain power to achieve 500,000 hours of autonomy. “So even if you lose it, it’s not the same as losing a much more expensive platform, like an F-35 or a B-2, for example. And obviously you don’t lose the crew, which is also very important,” Jones said.
Northrop Grumman’s next-generation autonomous fighter jet “Project Talon.” (FOX Business Network)
The cost of a typical piloted fighter aircraft is $75 million to $150 million. Talon is expected to cost a fraction of that, in the $15 million to $20 million range (the final price has not yet been revealed).
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“The performance of an aircraft like this doesn’t necessarily have to match spec to spec to what a manned fighter does. A manned fighter has a pilot, and you need to make sure that person can survive. So you need high speed to outrun a missile, you need maneuverability to outrun an attacker,” Jones said. “With an unmanned and very affordable platform, you don’t need high speed and high G because these are more expensive properties, but this is part of achieving affordability.”
The tail section of Northrop Grumman’s next-generation autonomous fighter jet, Project Talon. (FOX Business Network)
In remarks to defense industry leaders on Nov. 7, Army Secretary Pete Hegseth outlined a combat acquisition system and urged companies to develop it. new technology To be successful, we are committed to larger, longer-term contracts and are self-funding.
“The Department of the Army will only work with industry partners who share our priorities of speed and quantity above all else and are willing to use the speed of ingenuity to rapidly grow American manufacturing and get products to our warfighters quickly and reliably,” Hegseth said.
Northrop Grumman is just one of many American companies working on autonomous jet fighters. Anduril Industries is developing the YFQ-44 Fury, General Atomics is developing the YFQ-42 Gambit, and Lockheed Martin is developing the Vectis. Anduril’s fighter jet made its first autonomous flight in October.
| ticker | safety | last | change | change % |
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| N.O.C. | Northrop Grumman Corporation | 548.97 | -4.03 |
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| LMT | lockheed martin company | 452.20 | +3.85 |
+0.86% |
Artist’s rendering of Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works Vectis drone. (Lockheed Martin)
Talon was developed over 15 months with the goal of making its first flight within the next nine months. jet plane AI and measurement equipment It will be tested in the Beacon, a separate airplane that will be flown with a pilot on board. And while Talon is designed to be autonomous, some functions may still require human input, or a trigger pull.
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“In such an immature technology where loss of life is a potential outcome, we want to keep humans involved in the decision to fire or not fire, so that’s kind of the ethical line that we draw,” Jones said.
Jones said multiple branches of the U.S. military have expressed interest in Talon, as well as international customers, because of its affordability and performance.
“Secretary Hegseth has been very specific about wanting to get capabilities into the hands of warfighters quickly,” Jones said. “I think this is a great example. Secretary, if you’re looking, we’re ready.”
