The US Air Force is rapidly scaling up its plans to automate some of its fleet, and the civilian head of the service says he plans to fly one of the roboplanes this spring.
The world's first AI-flown fighter jet is capable of aerial combat
Last week, the USAF delivered three F-16 fighter jets to Eglin Air Force Base, for conversion to full AI control as part of the Viper Experimentation and Next-gen Operations Model (VENOM) autonomous test bed program.
Speaking Tuesday at a defense hearing of the US Senate Appropriations Committee, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall reported that the program was making great progress and that he will be a non-test pilot in one of the aircraft — with some backup, of course.
"I'm going to take a ride in an autonomously flown F-16 later this year," Kendall testified. "There will be a pilot with me who will just watch, as I will be, when the autonomous technology works, and hopefully neither he nor I will be needed to fly the aircraft."
