Lockheed Martin [LMT] along with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Air Force Test Pilot School, and the Calspan Corporation demonstrated successful manned/unmanned teaming, Lockheed Martin said Monday.
The teaming aims to improve combat efficiency and warfighter effectiveness. During the flight demonstration an experimental F-16 aircraft, the Have Raider II, acted as a surrogate Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) that autonomously reacts to a dynamic threat environment during an air-to-ground strike mission.
Lockheed Martin highlighted the demonstration had three main objectives: the ability to autonomously plan and execute air-to-ground strike missions based on mission priorities and available assets; the ability to dynamically react to a changing threat environment during an air-to-ground strike mission while automatically managing contingencies for capability failures, route deviations, and loss of communication; and a fully compliant USAF Open Mission Systems (OMS) software integration environment allowing rapid integration of software components developed by multiple providers.
“The OMS architecture used in Have Raider II made it possible to rapidly insert new software components into the system. OMS will allow the Air Force maximum flexibility in the development and fielding of cutting edge autonomous capabilities,” said Michael Coy, AFRL computer engineer said in a statement.
The demonstration lasted for two weeks at the Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. This was the second in a series of manned/unmanned teaming exercises to prove enabling technologies, the company said.
“The Have Raider II demonstration team pushed the boundaries of autonomous technology and put a fully combat-capable F-16 in increasingly complex situations to test the system’s ability to adapt to a rapidly changing operational environment. This is a critical step to enabling future Loyal Wingman technology development and operational transition programs,” Shawn Whitcomb, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works Loyal Wingman program manager, said in a statement.
Completely effective manned/unmanned teaming should reduce the high cognitive workload for the human warfighter, allowing them to focus on creative and complex panning and management, Lockheed Martin said. Autonomous systems also could access hazardous mission environments, react more quickly, and provide persistent capabilities without human fatigue, the company added.
“We’ve not only shown how an Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle can perform its mission when things go as planned, but also how it will react and adapt to unforeseen obstacles along the way,” Capt. Andrew Petry, AFRL autonomous flight operations engineer, said in a statement.
The first and previous demonstrator was the Have Raider I experimental F-16. That unit focused on advanced vehicle controls like autonomously flying in formation with a lead aircraft, conducting a ground-attack mission, and automatically rejoining the lead aircraft after the mission is completed. All of these capabilities were linked to the Lockheed Martin automatic collision avoidance systems to ensure coordinated and safe teaming between the F-16 and surrogate UCAV.