There has been dissonance among experts about the tactics and strategies that will be employed by China and the US in case Beijing decides to invade Taiwan. However, there is an agreement that drones will play a pivotal role in the Indo-Pacific conflict should push come to shove.
A 2023 Georgetown study of AI-related military spending found that more than a third of known contracts issued by US and Chinese military services over eight months in 2020 were for intelligent uncrewed systems.
China’s military is developing more than 50 types of drones with varying capabilities, amassing a fleet of tens of thousands of drones, potentially 10 times larger than Taiwan and the US combined.
Apart from the two adversaries racing to develop 6th-generation fighter jets, the two countries have shown a remarkable commitment to operationalizing “Loyal Wingmen.”
The “Loyal Wingman” concept is akin to the 6th generation crewed fighters having AI-enabled bodyguards that will fly in tandem with human pilots, increasing their situational awareness and helping them with complex missions with minimum risk.
Since the beginning of military aviation, wingmen have saved the day for fighter pilots. Even the ace pilots could not overemphasize the importance of a wingman in amplifying situational awareness, increasing firepower, and allowing for more dynamic tactics during aerial combat.
China is developing a loyal wingman drone, the Feihong FH-97A. It was unveiled at the Zhuhai air show in Southern China (first in 2022 and the upgraded version in 2024) and is a testament that Beijing is moving fast to gain a lead over the US.
The FH-97A was developed by Aerospace Times Feihong Technology Corp and is designed for “confrontational, high-intensity and long-lasting combat.” This was claimed by its parent company, the state-owned Ninth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, in a WeChat post last month.
The firm claimed that the aircraft will have multi-faceted capabilities and will be able to both lead swarms of smaller drones and act as a “wingman” to manned stealth fighter jets, with the fighter pilots controlling their plane and the accompanying drone.
The FH-97A drone meets the four (main) trends in the development of weapons – it is unmanned, miniaturized, intelligent, and stealthy.
Historically, the term “wingman” was first used to describe the pattern in which aircraft flew into battle. As the lead aircraft flew in formation, another aircraft would fly to the right and slightly behind. This second pilot, known as the wingman, protected the lead aircraft.
The Chinese unmanned wingman program is reportedly more advanced than the US program. Prototypes have been unveiled and may have undergone initial testing. Just like the US, it also lays potential emphasis on naval applications.
Unveiled some time ago, the Chinese wingman drone FH-97A is being called China’s efforts to copy both US technology and tactics. The stealthy unmanned aircraft was unveiled at Airshow China 2022.
An upgraded version of the FH-97 has been described as capable of an “all-day, all-weather” drone that can support reconnaissance and attack missions while being controlled from the cockpit of a manned fighter.
Teaming Of Manned & Unmanned Aircraft
In a recent simulated fight between American F-22 and Chinese J-20 conducted by Chinese scientists, the Chinese fighter emerged on top with a win rate exceeding 95 percent. This performance was attributed to the J-20’s ability to team up with two to three unmanned drones.
These aerial companions could scout out the enemy, draw fire from the F-22, and launch multidirectional attacks while the human-piloted J-20 struck the decisive blow.
The Chinese drone the GJ-11 ‘Sharp Sword,’ designed for strike missions and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) tasks, has been increasingly linked to future operations with crewed J-20 stealth fighters and potential deployment from People’s Liberation Army–Navy (PLA-N) aircraft carriers.
China is ramping up the development of the GJ-11, a stealthy flying-wing uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV). In contrast to China, the US has shifted focus to lower-cost drones intended to work closely with crewed jets, leaving a noticeable gap in the development of stealthy flying-wing UCAVs.
This strategic divergence points to a significant shift in aerial combat technology, with China potentially gaining an edge in uncrewed stealth capabilities.
According to former Indian Air Force (IAF) veteran Air Marshal Anil Khosla (retired), “The Loyal Wingman concept offers numerous advantages across various aspects of military operations. Multiple drones working in tandem with a manned platform allow one pilot to manage more assets, effectively increasing the overall combat power without needing additional manned aircraft.” Khosla has been maintaining a keen eye on the developments in the neighborhood.
All the major military powers in the world are presently working on the ‘Loyal Wingman’ project. Khosla observes that the Chinese Loyal Wingman systems, like Russian systems, are designed to focus on low observability.
“China is heavily investing in AI technologies to enhance the autonomy of its Loyal Wingman systems. These drones are expected to operate semi-autonomously or autonomously, making real-time decisions during missions and adapting to changing battlefield conditions,” he said, adding: “China actively seeks to export its UAV technologies. In the coming years, China’s Loyal Wingman systems are expected to play a significant role in its military strategy and regional power projection.”
The concept of the FH-97 is like the Valkyrie being developed by the US. The information about the project is scarce, but the Loyal Wingman is expected to have AI-driven capabilities for autonomous operations, swarming capabilities to overwhelm enemy defenses, and modular payload bays for multi-role adaptability.
Apart from this, the Chinese Wing Loong-10 is seen as a potential Loyal Wingman, featuring advanced electronic warfare systems and modular weapons bays.
The American Collaborative Combat Aircraft
The US has its own loyal wingmen program known as Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). The USAF will purchase 1,000 CCAs – two for operation by each of 300 F-35s and 200 planned Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighters. The service is now planning to operate more CCAs per crewed fighter.
As the 6th generation fighter aircraft development gets expensive, the Loyal Wingmen are expected to increase USAF’s coverage geographically.
A loyal wingman drone, for instance, could blanket an area with ISR, test and overwhelm enemy air defenses, jam enemy communications, and even launch an offensive strike when directed by a human, while manned fighter jets operate at a safer stand-off distance performing command and control.
Soon, the US military pilots will get the first batch of ‘loyal wingmen,’ who will watch their back and not dither from their given goals.
The US Air Force is narrowing down on vendors to manufacture drone wingmen to fly into battle zones alongside manned fighter jets by early 2025. With air superiority pivotal to America’s military dominance, CCA offers expanded fighter capacity (affordable mass) at reduced costs and adaptable timelines.
In April 2024, the USAF announced it selected Anduril and General Atomics to keep designing, building, and testing its first batch of drone wingmen.
The US and China are also developing various land and sea drones, such as China’s robot wolves. These assault-rifle armed machines can operate in packs and were designed to clear beaches of defensive forces, a capability with possible implications for any conflict over Taiwan.
Tensions between the US and China have spread to the drone industry. An American startup manufacturer, Skydio — which supplies Taiwan and Ukraine – said in November 2024 that its battery supply chain in China has been targeted by sanctions from Beijing
