US military set to deploy XQ-58A Valkyrie AI drones to counter China's strength
Russia-Ukraine conflict has thrust the significance of drones into the global spotlight. Notably, the Ukrainian military has effectively harnessed low-cost drones to confront the formidable Russian military.
This tactical shift has not gone unnoticed, as the United States is now poised to follow suit in integrating drones into future warfare strategies.
As revealed by Kathleen Hicks, the US Deputy Secretary of Defense, the Pentagon has outlined ambitious plans to deploy thousands of drones within the next two years. This initiative aims to offset China's numerical advantage in both personnel and military hardware.
Hicks articulated the crux of Beijing's advantage, stating, «Beijing's main advantage is 'mass: More ships.
More missiles. More people.' We'll counter the PLA's mass with mass of our own, but ours will be harder to plan for, harder to hit, harder to beat.»
A recent report in The New York Times discloses that the US Air Force is actively working on building a new generation of AI drones, with a remarkable cost-efficiency target—approximately $3 million each.
This is a mere fraction of the cost associated with advanced fighter aircraft. Hence, some within the Air Force have aptly coined the program as «affordable mass.»
One notable inclusion in this endeavor is the XQ-58A Valkyrie.
The XQ-58A Valkyrie stands as an experimental stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV).
This innovative aircraft has been designed and manufactured by Kratos Defense & Security Solutions under the United States Air Force's Low Cost Attritable Strike Demonstrator (LCASD) program, which falls under the USAF Research Laboratory's Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology (LCAAT) project portfolio. Initially designated as the XQ-222,
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