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Planning the next Loyal Wingman
A recent test flight of Boeing Australia’s Airpower Teaming System, the second such flight in the ‘Loyal Wingman’ program, which currently has two test aircraft, saw the first aircraft retract its undercarriage for the first time and the second aircraft take its first flight. A total of six have been ordered. A new final assembly is to be established at Wellcamp Airport near Toowoomba in Queensland, providing a boost to the state’s defence industry sector. This is an important milestone for the test program of the new capability that demonstrates developments that may be more important for the Australian Defence Force than the acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines in 20 years’ time. The Loyal Wingman is groundbreaking in a number of ways. 16
First, and perhaps most important, it is the first combat aircraft developed and designed for the Royal Australian Air Force since World War II. It represents a new type of capability for the RAAF through crewed–autonomous teaming technologies, allowing aircraft such as the F-35A Lightning II, F/A-18F Super Hornet and E-7A Wedgetail to ‘plug and play’ with the Loyal Wingman as a networked force. It’s set to offer ‘fighterlike performance’ with a range of more than 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 kilometres) and a modular design to allow a range of different types of missions including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, communications relay, and both kinetic and non-kinetic strike capabilities. Its use of smart and trusted autonomy will mean that it’s not a ‘remotely piloted’
drone but operates with a high degree of independence alongside crewed platforms without adding needless burdens to aircrew. With the assembly facility in Queensland, the Loyal Wingman project creates the potential for a flourishing aerospace industry that supports not only the manufacture of the aircraft itself, but also the rapid development of new types of air combat capabilities. It’s this future development potential that needs to be explored quickly. In the context of the AUKUS agreement, much attention has been placed on Australia’s decision to pursue nuclear powered general purpose attack submarines (SSN) and the challenges of getting them within a reasonable timeframe. But there’s a strong case
