Kristen Smith 
Lockheed Martin‘s Skunk Works division and the U.S. Air Force have reached a new milestone in human-machine teaming, with an F-22 Raptor pilot commanding an uncrewed aircraft in flight during a demonstration at Nellis Air Force Base.
The demonstration reflects the type of next-generation innovation that will drive panel discussions at the 2026 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 29, including those focused on autonomy, FutureG integration and advanced command-and-control architectures. Reserve your seat now to hear how senior defense officials and technologists are accelerating research, prototyping and deployment to maintain U.S. air superiority.
What Did Lockheed’s Drone Command Test Demonstrate?
During the event, the F-22 pilot used an in-cockpit, open-architecture interface to issue real-time tasking to the airborne drone, directing it through a specific mission profile, Lockheed Martin said Wednesday. The pilot vehicle interface is built to provide integration-ready capabilities to existing and future platforms.
“This effort represents Skunk Works driving a breakthrough in air combat capability, where single-seat aircraft command and control drones with simple and intuitive interfaces in the cockpit,” said OJ Sanchez, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Skunk Works.
How Does the Drone Command Capability Support CJADC2?
The flight supports the Air Force’s family-of-systems vision, a strategy centered on teaming humans and autonomous platforms to enhance situational awareness, interoperability, survivability, and mission flexibility. It also aligns with the Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control warfighting concept. According to Lockheed, the F-22’s open systems architecture is key to creating a more agile and adaptable fleet, which is fundamental to CJADC2.
