The F-35's Latest Trick Might Change Warfare As We Know It

Kris Osborn

Security,

What happens when America's most advanced plances can control drones in open conflict? 

F-35 pilots will eventually be able to control a small group of drones flying nearby from the air, performing sensing, reconnaissance and targeting functions, according to Air Force Chief Scientist Greg Zacharias.

Currently the flight path, sensor payload and weapons disposal of airborne drones such as Predators and Reapers are coordinated from ground control stations. In the future, however, drones may be fully operated from the cockpit of advanced fighter jets such as the Joint Strike Fighter or F-22, Zacharias said several months ago in an interview.

“The more autonomy and intelligence you can put on these vehicles, the more useful they will become,” he said.

This development could greatly enhance mission scope, flexibility and effectiveness by enabling a fighter jet to conduct a mission with more weapons, sensors, targeting technology and cargo, Zacharias explained.

For instance, real-time video feeds from the electro-optical/infrared sensors on board a Predator, Reaper or Global Hawk drone could go directly into an F-35 cockpit, without needing to go to a ground control station. This could speed up targeting and tactical input from drones on reconnaissance missions in the vicinity of where a fighter pilot might want to attack. In fast-moving combat involving both air-to-air and air-to-ground threats, increased speed could make a large difference. 

“It’s almost inevitable people will be saying, ‘I want more missiles on board to get through defenses or I need some EW [electronic warfare] countermeasures because I don't have the payload to carry a super big pod,’” he explained. “A high-powered microwave may have some potential that will require a dedicated platform. The negative side is you have to watch out that you don’t overload the pilot,” Zacharias added.

In addition, drones could be programmed to fly into heavily defended or high-risk areas ahead of manned fighter jets in order to assess enemy air defenses and reduce risk to pilots.

Advances in computer power, processing speed and areas referred to as artificial intelligence are rapidly changing the scope of what platforms are able to perform without needing human intervention. This is mostly developing in the form of what Zacharias referred to as “decision aide support,” meaning machines will be able to better interpret, organize, analyze and communicate information to a much greater extent -- without have humans manage each individual task.