The Air Force’s two Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) contractors have begun moving beyond production-representative test aircraft and into early manufacturing. Anduril completed its first Ohio-built Fury on July 27, while General Atomics said production of its FQ-42A was already underway.
First Fury Completed in Ohio
Anduril assembled the aircraft at its Arsenal-1 facility in Pickaway County, southeast of Columbus. According to JobsOhio, the first aircraft took 126 days to complete. The production line is designed to build as many as 150 Fury aircraft annually.
The milestone followed the Air Force’s June 17 award of engineering, manufacturing and production contracts for Anduril’s FQ-44A and General Atomics’ FQ-42A. The service said the contracts were awarded four months ahead of schedule and support plans to acquire more than 150 combat-capable Collaborative Combat Aircraft by the end of the decade.
General Atomics Begins FQ-42A Production
“We’ve been preparing for this order, and manufacturing is already well underway,” General Atomics Aeronautical Systems President David Alexander said. The company flew the YFQ-42A production-representative test aircraft for the first time in August 2025.
The aircraft remain in development rather than service as operationally fielded fleets. Air Force units are continuing to evaluate weapons loading, maintenance requirements and operating procedures using YFQ-42A and YFQ-44A test aircraft at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada.
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