General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has paused flight testing of its YFQ-42A uncrewed combat aircraft after one of the production-representative test platforms experienced a mishap shortly after take-off from a company-owned airport in the California desert.
The incident occurred on April 6 at approximately 1:00pm Pacific time at what is understood to be General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.’s (GA-ASI) Gray Butte Airport near Palmdale. No injuries were reported and the company said established safety procedures and safeguards worked as intended.
GA-ASI said it is assessing the condition of the aircraft and investigating the root cause. Flight test operations will resume when deemed appropriate, the company added, without providing a timeline.
C. Mark Brinkley, a GA-ASI spokesman said, “Safety is our top priority, for our people and the public. In this case, established procedures and safeguards worked as intended, and there were no injuries. We’re going to take a close look at what happened, gather all the data, and allow the investigation to guide us moving forward.”
The YFQ-42A, which GA-ASI has named Dark Merlin, is one of several production-representative Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) in the technical maturation and risk reduction phase for the US Air Force. The single-engine uncrewed jet is derived from GA-ASI’s XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station and is designed to operate as a semi-autonomous wingman alongside piloted fighters including the F-35 and the forthcoming Boeing F-47.
The aircraft first flew in August 2025, less than two years after the CCA program’s formal launch. GA-ASI has since built and flown multiple YFQ-42As, conducting push-button autonomous landings at its California test facilities. In February, the aircraft completed a four-hour semi-autonomous flight using Collins Aerospace’s Sidekick mission autonomy software, validating the US Air Force’s Autonomy Government Reference Architecture for modular, plug-and-play autonomy upgrades.
The YFQ-42A is one of two finalists competing for the Increment 1 CCA production contract, alongside Anduril Industries’ YFQ-44A. The US Air Force expects to make a production decision by the end of fiscal year 2026 in September, with the Department of Defense seeking nearly US$1 billion in fiscal year 2027 to begin procurement of an initial 100-150 aircraft.
A US Air Force spokesperson confirmed the service is aware of the incident and will follow standard aircraft mishap protocols.
