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AI-controlled F-16 paves way for autonomous air combat

A U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jet, recently modified to serve as an autonomous flying testbed, is undergoing in-air testing using an artificial intelligence (AI) agent to autonomously control flight. This milestone advances state-of-the-art technological infrastructure designed to enable rapid, scalable combat AI development across the joint force.

The aircraft is one of a group of F-16s that have been converted into autonomous-capable platforms under the Viper Experimentation and Next-generation Operations Model (VENOM) program -- a joint effort between the U.S. Air Force and DARPA, initiated under the Air Combat Evolution (ACE) program.

Building on previous ACE flights with the one-of-a-kind X-62A VISTA, which proved an AI agent could autonomously pilot a fighter jet in a dogfight, the flight of the VENOM aircraft demonstrates the United States' ability to transform standard operational fleet aircraft to employ cutting-edge AI.

"These groundbreaking flight tests of VENOM-modified F-16s advance the infrastructure needed to develop trusted, autonomous air combat capabilities," said Brig. Gen. James "Fangs" Valpiani, Ph.D., DARPA program manager. "The Air Force and DARPA team has automated flight controls and sensors on a standard F-16 without changing the jet's core software. This enables an efficient pipeline for developing dominant AI for aerial combat, allowing us to rapidly innovate for the warfighter."

The modification, known as the VENOM Autonomy Kit (VAK), was designed and integrated by multiple collaborators under the DARPA ACE program. The kit utilizes a novel interface with the aircraft's flight controls and mission systems, allowing a pilot to toggle between traditional human control and AI control with the flip of a switch. This ensures a safe, reliable environment for human-on-the-loop experimentation.

Moving forward, VENOM aircraft will serve as the cornerstone for the next phase of AI development under DARPA's Artificial Intelligence Reinforcements (AIR) program. The AIR program will leverage the VENOM fleet to test multiple AI agents in live-flight scenarios. This critical testing will pave the way for human pilots to seamlessly command and orchestrate teams of autonomous, uncrewed aircraft. Ultimately, the capabilities advanced under AIR will enable a wide variety of future joint force operations, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft programs.

"The emerging threat environment, especially as it relates to aerial combat, is growing increasingly complex," added Valpiani. "AI has tremendous potential to help humans manage this complexity in beyond-visual-range combat, but many hard questions remain concerning the performance and trustworthiness of combat AI in the extreme fog and friction of modern warfare. The AIR program aims to apply cutting-edge combat agents to operationally relevant scenarios to address these questions and field war-deterring, war-winning capabilities to our warfighters."

Valpiani will conclude his tenure as a DARPA program manager later this month. Lt. Col. Patrick "Dice" Highland, Ph.D., has recently joined DARPA, and he is the incoming program manager for AIR.

"I'm incredibly proud of the AIR program's role in advancing our nation's combat autonomy, demonstrated by this VENOM milestone," said Highland. "We now have the opportunity to create dominant autonomy for beyond-visual-range, multi-ship combat. These flights give us an early glimpse of how AI agents may begin actively transforming air warfare."

Terry Wilson, Ph.D., director of AI Development and Transition for the Air Force Research Laboratory's Autonomy Capability Team (ACT3), remains in place as the deputy program manager for VENOM and AIR. In this capacity, Wilson ensures vital program continuity, technical and operations leadership, and maintains essential stakeholder alignment across joint organizations. This close, enduring partnership between DARPA and AFRL's ACT3 team remains pivotal to securing the program's long-term operational success.

"I look forward to unleashing the VENOM platform and moving these capabilities out of simulation and into the sky," said Wilson.

The AIR program will continue to improve speed and predictivity of model development and scale in-flight testing to multi-ship operations with increased complexity to unlock novel and robust AI-driven autonomy.

Source: DARPA

Published July 2026

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