The "bodyguard" for the fighter made the first full flight. Yesterday, November 4, the Australian Ministry of Defense on its official YouTube channel published a video of the first flight of the Loyal Wingman drone with the landing gear retracted.
The Loyal Wingman drone has been making test flights since March of this year. During the last tests, which take place at the Woomera test site, both prototypes successfully flew, including with the landing gear retracted. This allowed the development team to move to a new stage of the Boeing Airpower Teaming System program, under which Boeing Australia intends to create an "ecosystem" of manned and unmanned combat aircraft.
The first flight of the Loyal Wingman with the landing gear retracted
The Loyal Wingman is a nearly 12-meter drone capable of operating autonomously or under operator control. At the same time, control can be carried out both from a ground station and by the crew of a manned aircraft. The Australian Defense Ministry calls the new development a "shield for more expensive manned aircraft." The key feature of the new drone is its modular structure: it can be equipped with various nose modules, as well as carry reconnaissance modules or weapons. According to the developers, it is the replaceable nose part that will be a "surprise" for the enemy.
