Northrop Grumman announced progress in autonomous air combat development with the U.S. Air Force-designated YFQ-48A Talon Blue, an autonomous wingman prototype under its company-funded Project Talon portfolio. The company said the design uses composite materials, cuts parts by 50% and is 1,000 pounds lighter than previous designs to speed assembly and support affordable mass production, while also advancing software through its Talon IQ autonomous testbed ecosystem. The announcement describes ongoing development and partnership activity and does not say the results were previously presented or will be presented at a future event.

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