Lockheed Martin to self-fund five Vectis autonomous combat aircraft, with flight demonstrations planned for 2027

Lockheed Martin will use its own funds to build five Vectis autonomous combat aircraft, with flight demonstrations scheduled for 2027, Chief Executive Jim Taiclet said on the company's third-quarter earnings call on October 22. The investment comes ahead of formal customer requirements, with the company anticipating an opportunity under the U.S. Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) Increment 2 program.

Taiclet said progress at Skunk Works persuaded him to increase funding. The team moved from initial drawings to wind tunnel testing in under two months and released its first production part within eight months. "This progress gave me confidence to green-light an increase, and now we will build five Vectis aircraft with our own investment," he said.

Lockheed Martin is designing Vectis for air-to-air combat and strike missions, including attacks on an adversary's integrated air and missile defense batteries, drawing on its experience with crewed fighters and discussions with customers. Taiclet said he expects CCA Increment 2 to require greater range, payload and survivability than the first increment, and that these expectations are guiding the investment. He did not disclose Vectis performance specifications or a target price.

The company also wants Vectis to be available to eligible international customers from the outset, and Taiclet said this objective is informing the design rather than leaving the company to seek clearance for overseas sales after developing a U.S.-only aircraft. He did not announce an export approval or an international order.

Vectis sits alongside F-22 modernization and further F-35 upgrades in the air combat strategy Taiclet described. He said Lockheed Martin's experience with both fighters helps it assess how crewed aircraft will connect and operate with autonomous systems.