US Navy issues RFI for carrier-based Collaborative Combat Aircraft, targets unit cost under $30 mln

The U.S. Navy this week unveiled a new set of specifications for its future carrier-based Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). While the service did not disclose the aircraft's combat radius, the Aug. 31 Request for Information (RFI) stated that the CCA must carry up to 5 tons of weapons and cost no more than $30 million per unit. The response deadline for prospective contractors is Sept. 18.

Key Requirements

The RFI asks contractors to "provide the maximum combat radius including weapons loadout, 30 minutes on-station and reserve fuel for safe recovery that the proposed solution can perform."

• The aircraft must be capable of carrying "four weapons up to 2,500 pounds each externally throughout the target flight envelope and carrier certification flights."
• Designs may include both internal and external weapons.
• The Navy is seeking two prototypes capable of achieving shore-based, aircraft carrier qualifications within the next three years.

Mission and Purpose

The CCA project aims to deliver an autonomous combat drone that can team up with manned carrier aircraft and perform missions in contested skies that are becoming increasingly risky for human pilots. The Navy also wants carrier-based combat drones to mitigate the impact of traditional weapons losses, alleviating the "high cost and extended timelines required to replace manned platforms and naval surface combatants," which "limit the Joint Force's capacity to absorb operational losses," according to the RFI.

The service's Aug. 31 request describes an ideal unmanned aircraft capable of executing single- and multi-aircraft strike missions. Conceptual images from major defense firms such as Anduril and General Atomics suggest designs that resemble smaller versions of manned stealth fighters.

Carrier Integration

Regardless of the final design, the Navy wants a CCA that will not require drastic changes to carriers and embarked air wings:

• The CCA should operate easily from Ford- and Nimitz-class carriers, including catapult takeoffs and arrested landings up to Sea State 5 (waves up to 13 feet high).
• Flight operations are to be conducted using existing carrier air wing personnel.
• CCA drones will be controlled by the MD-5 Unmanned Carrier Aviation Mission Control System, which serves the MQ-25 Stingray.
• "Physical dimensions, height, width, and weight thresholds must meet carrier deck, elevator and hangar bay requirements."
• There should be a minimum of specialized support and deck-handling equipment for the drones.
• The drone spot factor—how much deck and hangar space it occupies—"must not exceed existing fourth generation fighter aircraft."

The Navy does eventually want new methods for servicing and handling its CCA platforms. Contractors are asked to suggest alternatives for "a deck handling system that can operate all carrier-based unmanned air vehicles through launch, recovery and deck operations during EMCON [emergency] conditions without increasing support equipment solutions or requiring any additional flight deck personnel."

Cost Considerations

The CCA's price tag is growing. In 2024, Navy officials noted that, because the drone is meant to be expendable, the service would like to keep the cost down to around $15 million apiece. However, the new RFI asks companies to provide an interim manufacturing and supply chain plan for "reaching the Navy's affordability goals of $30 million per unit."

About Michael Peck

Michael Peck is a correspondent for Defense News and a columnist for the Center for European Policy Analysis.