Will America retain blue sky air superiority when autonomous drones mature? Small drones may rule (for now) the brown skies low over the battlefields. But blue sky capabilities still matter.
Fully autonomous air combat is coming:
Top Gun: Maverick begins with Rear Admiral Cain alluding to how Maverick and human pilots in general will have no place in the future of air combat. Maverick’s response is calm but defiant: ‘Maybe so, sir, but not today.’ The scene may be fictional, but it reflects current developments in military aviation as technological advances in increasingly autonomous uncrewed aircraft are disrupting long-standing doctrines developed around manned aircraft.
America (and other Western countries) have relied on superior pilot training to excel in air-to-air combat. Will autonomous combat be a Dreadnought moment that allows enemies to catch up? Or will our AI-assisted programmers maintain Western blue sky superiority?
NOTE: TDR Winter War of 2022 coverage continues here.
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NOTE: Photo from the article.
