The U.S. Air Force has reached a major milestone in its Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program after Anduril’s YFQ-44A Fury drone successfully fired an AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) during a live-fire test, the service announced.
The test, conducted from Edwards Air Force Base in California, marked the first time a U.S. CCA aircraft has launched a live air-to-air missile.
The Air Force said the unmanned jet fired the missile at a simulated “digital target” in secluded airspace over the Mojave Desert, as part of efforts to validate the aircraft’s autonomous weapon capabilities.
The test was part of the evaluation process that began earlier this year with inert weapons carriage flights. Those early tests collected flight data to confirm the aircraft’s handling and performance. Subsequent evaluations validated the data link integration between the aircraft and the weapon system, ensuring operator commands were executed precisely by the platform in a simulated environment.
“This live-fire test is an important next step in the development of Collaborative Combat Aircraft,” said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Ken Wilsbach. “We’re one step closer to delivering capabilities to the warfighter.”
We’re one step closer to getting CCA to the warfighter with this live fire test! pic.twitter.com/1jAsIiXzVa
— General Ken Wilsbach (@OfficialCSAF) July 15, 2026
Air Force Gen. Dale White, the Pentagon’s direct reporting portfolio manager for Critical Major Weapon Systems, said the progression from earlier flight tests to live-fire operations demonstrates the program’s maturity.
“These tests provide operational validation that Collaborative Combat Aircraft can execute the weapon employment sequence autonomously within pilot-defined parameters, accelerating capability delivery to the warfighter,” White said.
Anduril Industries, the developer of YFQ-44A Fury, said the test is “an important step in turning CCA into an operational capability.”
New test footage: first missile shot from YFQ-44A.
YFQ-44A executed an end-to-end, beyond-line-of-sight strike against a simulated target.
The test, executed out of @EdwardsAFB, represents an important step in turning CCA into an operational capability. pic.twitter.com/70cRIs6uXJ
— Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) July 15, 2026
The YFQ-44A Fury is one of two aircraft being developed under the first phase of the Air Force’s CCA program, alongside General Atomics’ YFQ-42A Dark Merlin. The service plans to establish a mixed fleet of autonomous “robotic wingmen” designed to operate alongside crewed fighter aircraft in future combat operations.
