Lockheed Martin Details Vectis Autonomous Combat System With Open Modular Architecture

Lockheed Martin has released further technical details of its Vectis autonomous combat system. The system is positioned as an artificial intelligence-enabled collaborative combat platform for future air warfare and is intended to operate alongside crewed fighter aircraft in high-threat environments. Vectis is not a drone programme in the traditional sense but a highly autonomous digital combat architecture capable of independently planning flight routes, evaluating tactical options and executing combat actions based on mission objectives, battlefield conditions and real-time threat information, while maintaining coordination with crewed aircraft and command structures.

Vectis uses an open design that can be integrated into different platforms, and could in future be applied to existing drones as well as deployed on a new generation of collaborative combat aircraft. The system is being developed for the US Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft concept. Under that concept, a single crewed fighter could simultaneously direct multiple autonomous uncrewed wingmen, which could take on reconnaissance, electronic warfare, target search, decoy and strike missions, reducing the risk of exposing pilots directly to dangerous environments.

Vectis has a high degree of autonomy but would not operate entirely outside human control. In practice, artificial intelligence would handle a large volume of high-speed decision-making and mission management, while key combat decisions would remain with human operators, a design known as keeping a human in the loop. The system has completed extensive digital simulation and virtual testing, covering complex air combat scenarios, electronic jamming environments and multi-platform collaborative combat missions. The US military continues to advance the Collaborative Combat Aircraft programme, aiming to strengthen combat capability through low-cost, high-quantity autonomous platforms and to improve the survivability of crewed aircraft in future high-intensity conflicts. Vectis remains in continuous development and validation.