The Air Force has chosen Boeing, General Atomics, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions and Northrop Grumman as initial contractors to support the Skyborg program and compete for tasks worth up to $400 million. Each company received an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity award, the Pentagon announced today in a contract notice. The Air Force is not obligating any funds yet and will instead provide payments for individual orders that vendors will carry out through July 2026. These orders will help build and demonstrate the Skyborg autonomous, attritable drone that could eventually serve as a force multiplier for manned aircraft operating in contested environments. "The Skyborg Prototyping, Experimentation & Autonomy Development (SPEAD) contract will be used to deliver missionized prototypes in support of operational experimentation; and develop the first Skyborg air platform with modular hardware and software payloads that will incorporate the Skyborg autonomy core system and enable manned/ unmanned teaming," today's Defense Department notice states.
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