The FQ-42 Vengeance has been delivered to Creech Air Force Base in Nevada, where it will undergo continued testing and evaluation, according to a company announcement released Monday. The arrival comes one week after the U.S. Air Force officially named the Collaborative Combat Aircraft platform Vengeance.
FQ-42 Vengeance testing and development
General Atomics said the new FQ-42 Vengeance reached Creech on Friday and will support ongoing experimentation with the jet as part of regular test operations.
“Every week, the Air Force is pushing forward with new and more impressive accomplishments using Vengeance. It’s amazing to think of how far this program has come in such a short amount of time,” said Mike Atwood, vice president of Advanced Programs at General Atomics.
The update follows an Agile Combat Employment exercise at Creech two months ago that used Anduril’s FQ-44 Fury. That event enabled airmen to fly sorties and develop early tactics and procedures intended to guide how Collaborative Combat Aircraft are integrated into the force.
Anduril has not yet identified which Air Force base will host the Fury aircraft.
According to General Atomics, the FQ-42 Vengeance features an internal weapons bay along with other low observability and survivability enhancements. The aircraft has flown alongside F-35 and F-15E Strike Eagles in preparation for collaborative control operations with crewed fighters.
Senior leadership has outlined ambitious plans for autonomous aviation. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink recently said the service expects to field at least 500 autonomous aircraft by 2032, with roles mirroring many missions currently performed by manned fighters.
During last week’s keynote at the Air & Space Forces Association’s 2026 Air, Space & Cyber Conference, Meink added that special operations forces will be able to deploy thousands of autonomous one-way attack systems and that autonomous fighters such as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft will be part of the inventory.
General Atomics also reported completing a new low-observable paint facility to support CCA production with expanded manufacturing space. The company said it is on track to produce six aircraft per month.
Production of the FQ-42 Vengeance is proceeding with company funding while government funding plans are finalized, the company said, describing the move as an effort to avoid delivery delays.
The Air Force’s fiscal 2027 budget request includes $996.5 million for CCA procurement, $150 million in advanced procurement for the following year, and $1.37 billion for continued research and development. The total program request is $2.37 billion.