US Air Force upgrades X-62 VISTA for combat AI tests

The X-62 VISTA has been a key platform for AI and autonomy research since it made history in 2023 with the first known live-fly AI dogfight against a human-piloted F-16. Its open systems architecture allows it to mimic other aircraft, making it a unique testbed for uncrewed combat aircraft and increasingly autonomous crewed fighters.

The recent upgrades, including the Mission Systems Upgrade, add advanced radar, sensors, computing, and network communications. The two accelerated test programmes, HAVE HEAT and HAVE HOLIDAYS, were conducted in April and focus on autonomous AI sensor-to-vehicle control and integrating frameworks for advanced technology evaluation. HAVE HOLIDAYS included sub-programmes like HAVE BALLDROP, which integrated a third-party autonomous agent from the AFRL's xFACTOR programme; HAVE THANKS, which integrated the BirdBox open-architecture software framework; HAVE DREIDEL, which evaluated runtime-assurance technology; and HAVE SANTA, which tested IBM's NorthPole neuromorphic chip for on-platform simulation.

These efforts are part of the broader US push to develop autonomous combat aircraft, such as Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), that can complement crewed fighters. Next-generation manned fighters like the F-47, GCAP/Tempest, and F-35 Block 4 upgrades also incorporate significant AI and autonomy, though they remain piloted. The X-62's upgraded capabilities are expected to help bridge the gap between pilot trust and machine learning, as highlighted by operational aircrew from an Air Combat Command fighter squadron at the inaugural X-62 Research Symposium.