General Atomics Scales FQ-42 Drone Production to 500 Units

The manufacturer tasks Spirit Defense with fuselage production to meet the Pentagon's 2032 unit target for the CCA program.

Updated on Oct. 27, 2026 in Quantum Computing

Isometric editorial illustration of a gray drone fuselage shell on an industrial assembly jig, depicting mass-production scaling. — General Atomics has contracted Spirit Defense to produce fuselage components, aiming to scale FQ-42 drone production to 500 units by 2032. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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General Atomics has tapped Boeing subsidiary Spirit Defense to manufacture the fuselage for its FQ-42 drone, which first flew in August 2025. This production shift supports the Pentagon's goal to field 500 units of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) by 2032.

Why it matters

The program aims to increase combat mass by deploying cost-effective, uncrewed drones alongside crewed fighters like the F-22 and F-35. By producing drones at scale, the military intends to perform high-risk missions while keeping human pilots out of immediate danger.

The FQ-42 carries a target unit cost of $30 million, approximately one-third the cost of an F-35 fighter. The program transitioned from contract to first flight of the YFQ-42A Dark Merlin prototype in 16 months.

The players

General Atomics

A defense contractor specializing in remotely piloted aircraft and advanced technology systems for the U.S. military.

Spirit Defense

A subsidiary of Boeing focused on the manufacturing and assembly of specialized aerospace components and airframe structures.

The details

General Atomics is utilizing an industrial production line, rather than traditional custom manufacturing, to scale the FQ-42 fuselage construction. The drone is an uncrewed air vehicle designed for autonomous operation alongside crewed aircraft. It functions by executing high-risk maneuvers, allowing the platform to serve as a force multiplier that protects expensive, human-piloted assets in contested environments.

August 2025: The FQ-42 (YFQ-42A Dark Merlin) completed its first flight.
Fiscal Year 2027: The Pentagon requested $1.11 billion for the CCA program budget.
2032: The program target of 500 units is set for completion.

The Tech Race

The FQ-42 integration is a core component of the Pentagon's Collaborative Combat Aircraft program, which mandates the fielding of uncrewed platforms at a fraction of the cost of legacy fighters. This effort sits at the center of a shift toward high-volume, attritable combat hardware to challenge current peer-competitor aerial capabilities.

This production ramp-up directly affects defense industry supply chain capacity, shifting focus toward mass-manufactured autonomous assets. It signals a move away from bespoke aerospace fabrication toward high-throughput assembly models for the next decade of military aviation.

The takeaway

The FQ-42 represents a clear shift in aerial warfare toward mass-produced, cost-efficient uncrewed drones meant to supplement human-piloted fleets. Watch the fiscal year 2027 budget appropriations for confirmation of the $1.11 billion funding request to support the 500-unit target by 2032.