In the early days of military aviation, when aircraft were fragile and unreliable, pilots faced constant danger from enemy fire. Through advancement in technology, these pilots can be replaced with an unyielding machine gun, a fearless “wingman” in the cockpit.
In the early days of military aviation, when aircraft were fragile and unreliable, pilots faced constant danger from enemy fire. Through advancement in technology, these pilots can be replaced with an unyielding machine gun, a fearless “wingman” in the cockpit. The concept of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was born—a daring idea that captivated minds.
Fast forward to the present, cutting-edge technology has ushered in a new era of threats. Highly advanced Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) systems pose a grave risk to pilots, reminding us of the ever-present danger they face. Yet, “technology has also come to our aid,” says an expert.
Today, a remarkable synergy emerges between manned and unmanned aerial platforms. There has been relentless progress in unmanned aerial systems and the revolutionary power of artificial intelligence. These advancements have paved the way for seamless cooperation between human pilots and their robotic counterparts. Together, they embark on missions, sharing expertise and resources, bolstered by reliable and secure data links.
Although no nation has yet put into production a plane with loyal wingman capabilities, numerous countries are working hard to make this concept a reality. However, what exactly does having a trustworthy wingman, an auxiliary aircraft, a remote carrier, or a pilot’s companion mean?
“Loyal wingmen can perform a variety of missions, including surveillance, decoy targets, electronic warfare, and suppression of enemy air defences. They can also carry out weapon delivery, although the “air-to-air” role is “slightly more complicated simply because of the complex situation and rules of engagement. Such aircraft are expected to operate in multiples, maybe in pairs or threes,” explains Girish Linganna, Bengaluru based Defence and Aerospace Analyst.
Quantity can have a quality of its own, and loyal wingmen excel in this aspect. It’s the ability to generate combat mass, potentially at an affordable cost, and in a way that you can accept levels of attrition and depletion that you would never accept with a manned combat aircraft. Auxiliary aircraft allow more targets of varying complexity to be deployed in the sky, providing adversaries with more targets to engage.
Especially as fighter aircraft crews become more expensive and pilot training becomes painstakingly costly, air forces feel that loyal wingmen can be one of the solutions for creating combat mass.
The key is in mass. According to Linganna “In a contested environment, if the approach is to send massed UAVs with some level of threat, even if it varies with the number of UAVs, then defensive systems face a problem. These considerations involve the balance of capabilities and costs, where maximizing the survivability of each UAV is required up to the point of the cost curve and then determining the mass of UAVs needed for a specific mission/target.”
The option of maintaining an exquisite manned platform at ‘high survivability’ is costly and life-critical. The introduction of loyal wingman capability is a game-changer.
The trend towards using single-seat fighters is partly driven by cost reduction in training. However, if the number of loyal wingmen increases, fighter units will require weapons systems officers in the rear to oversee multiple loyal wingmen. This gradually creates a trend toward a mix of single-seat and two-seat aircraft.
An alternative approach is to pre-program a significant portion of the mission profile into highly autonomous loyal wingmen before takeoff. However, this raises questions of international law when human authorisation is required for weapon employment.
Unsurprisingly, the US is actively experimenting in this field. In December 2021, the Secretary of the Air Force, Frank Kendall, stated that the US Air Force is ready to move beyond experimentation. He mentioned that the US Air Force wanted to “operate unmanned combat aircraft in the category of fighters,” such as the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter, which is expected to succeed the F-22A in the 2030s.
The US Air Force is also developing a “companion bomber” for the B-21. The B-21 is an extremely costly aircraft. It has a specific capacity and range. The US wishes to enhance this capability and requires something compatible. I wouldn’t particularly recommend escorting it. F. Kendall shared that the tactics have yet to be determined.
Long-range operations could be one of the driving forces behind American programs, especially in the Indo-Pacific theatre. If the US considers the possibility of internal weapon carriage, it would require larger platforms.
The Air Force Research Laboratory is funding the high-priority Skyborg program. According to the Department of Defense, it will deliver “prototypes for operational experimentation and develop the first airworthy Skyborg autonomous airborne system with modular hardware and software payloads, including the Skyborg autonomy core system that will enable manned-unmanned teaming with existing and future manned aircraft.”
According to the information available in the public domain, in December 2020, two-year contracts for flight experiments were awarded to Kratos Defense ($37.8 million), Boeing ($25.7 million), and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) ($14.3 million).
Kratos Defense has developed the XQ-58A Valkyrie and UTAP-22 Mako. The latter is based on the Kratos BQM-167A aerial target. Valkyrie made its first flight on March 5, 2019, and Kratos stated that they are optimising the production line to vary performance without significantly impacting cost or workforce.
Regarding the evolution of the system’s capabilities, Kratos stated that the company has continued integrating various subsystem combinations to accomplish multiple mission capability categories. These include reconnaissance sensors, weaponized payloads, sub-MALE UAVs, loitering munitions, and onboard relay capabilities.
The fundamental advantages of Valkyrie are “the low-cost-to-performance ratio; high potential for survivability in contested environments; flight characteristics similar to a typical high-subsonic fighter, making it easily adaptable for manned-unmanned teaming operations; autonomy and flexibility based on open interfaces; and, finally, its runway flexibility, meaning it can take off and land without a runway.”
Can loyal wingmen operate in highly contested environments?
According to Linganna, “It depends on the situation. The ability of loyal wingmen with key signature capabilities and aerodynamic characteristics to operate in contested environments is substantially greater than that of more conventional UAVs seen in conflicts over the past two decades. However, when contemplating protection against advanced air defence systems, even our most expensive manned aviation systems face a formidable obstacle.”
https://www.financialexpress.com/business/defence-unleashing-unmanned-power-the-rise-of-loyal-wingmen-in-modern-warfare-3120245/
