Wildfire
GA-ASI clean-sheet uncrewed aircraft announced for military, civil and commercial missions. No first-flight or fielding milestone established.
Development
- Unveiled
- Sep 10, 2026
Prime · United States
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems
HQ Poway, United StatesFounded 1992
Developer and manufacturer of remotely piloted aircraft, sensors, ground control systems and related support services.
PrimeFielded
Products6
FQ-42A
General Atomics Collaborative Combat Aircraft for the US Air Force.
Prototype
- Unveiled
- Mar 3, 2025
- Contract award
- Jun 17, 2026
Gray Eagle 25M
Modernized GA-ASI Gray Eagle medium-altitude drone for the U.S. Army.
Prototype
- First flight
- Dec 5, 2023
MQ-20 Avenger
Jet-powered uncrewed aircraft used by GA-ASI and the US Navy as a surrogate test bed for autonomy and collaborative combat aircraft technology.
Prototype
MQ-9B SkyGuardian
General Atomics long-endurance remotely piloted ISR aircraft with over-the-horizon satellite control.
Fielded
- Export
- Mar 17, 2026
Photo: Airwolfhound via Flickr · CC BY-SA 2.0
XQ-67A
General Atomics Off-Board Sensing Station uncrewed aircraft built for AFRL on a common 'genus' chassis.
Prototype
- First flight
- Feb 28, 2024
Newest unveiled first. Open a product for its milestone timeline, components and sources.
Government awards & programs5 awards · $208M obligated · up to $1.03B ceiling · 2 programs
Awards received5
| Announced | Award | Agency | Type | Program | Obligated | Ceiling | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 17, 2026 | CCA Increment 1 EMD and production contract (FQ-42A)press:general-atomics-aeronautical-systems:2026-06-17:fq-42a-production | U.S. Air Force | Contract | — | Undisclosed | — | Confirmed |
| Dec 1, 2023 | MQ-1C-25M Gray Eagle Modernized Extended Range systemsW58RGZ24C0021 | U.S. Army | Contract | — | — | Up to $389M | Confirmed |
| — | QATAR MQ-9B GREEN AC PURCHASEFA868926FB001 | U.S. Air Force | Contract | — | $81.9M | $451M | Confirmed |
| — | CCA Increment 1 option award: production-representative test articlespress:general-atomics-aeronautical-systems:2024-04:cca-inc1-option | U.S. Air Force | Contract | — | Undisclosed | — | Confirmed |
| — | MQ-9 REAPER OPEN MISSION SYSTEM (OMS) STELLAR RELAY (SR) AND LINK-16 RETROFIT UCAFA868923F2650 | U.S. Air Force | Contract | — | $126M | $192M | Confirmed |
- CCA Increment 1 EMD and production contract (FQ-42A)Jun 17, 2026 · ContractFrom U.S. Air ForceConfirmedUndisclosed
- Up to $389MCeiling
- $81.9MObligated · up to $451M ceiling
- CCA Increment 1 option award: production-representative test articlesUndated · ContractFrom U.S. Air ForceConfirmedUndisclosed
- MQ-9 REAPER OPEN MISSION SYSTEM (OMS) STELLAR RELAY (SR) AND LINK-16 RETROFIT UCAUndated · ContractFrom U.S. Air ForceConfirmed$126MObligated · up to $192M ceiling
Programs2
| Program | Role | Program status | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) | Prime | Production | Confirmed |
| Massed Modular Aircraft | Competing bidder | Competition | Reported |
- Competing bidder · Competition
Obligated is what has been committed so far; ceiling is the most the award can reach. Joint values cover all recipients and are excluded from this company’s money totals.
Sep 10, 2026NewsGeneral atomics unveils wildfire drone to replace reaperSep 9, 2026NewsItaly orders 2 new MQ-9As Reapers, as US seeks newer options - Breaking DefenseAug 31, 2026NewsJapan seeks new extended-range missiles in record $55B defense budget request - Breaking DefenseJun 18, 2026NewsUS Air Force awards first CCA production contracts to General Atomics, AndurilJun 17, 2026NewsAir Force picks Anduril, General Atomics to build first operational CCA dronesDefenseScoopJun 12, 2026News'The threat is there': Germany to pair P-8s with MQ-9 drones to keep an eye on Russian subs - Breaking DefenseJun 5, 2026NewsUSAF Scrambling To Buy What Few MQ-9 Reapers It Can Find After Epic Fury Losses
- Sep 10, 2026NewsGeneral atomics unveils wildfire drone to replace reaper
- Sep 9, 2026NewsItaly orders 2 new MQ-9As Reapers, as US seeks newer options - Breaking Defense
- Aug 31, 2026NewsJapan seeks new extended-range missiles in record $55B defense budget request - Breaking Defense
- Jun 18, 2026NewsUS Air Force awards first CCA production contracts to General Atomics, Anduril
- Jun 17, 2026NewsDefenseScoopAir Force picks Anduril, General Atomics to build first operational CCA drones
- Jun 12, 2026News'The threat is there': Germany to pair P-8s with MQ-9 drones to keep an eye on Russian subs - Breaking Defense
- Jun 5, 2026NewsUSAF Scrambling To Buy What Few MQ-9 Reapers It Can Find After Epic Fury Losses
Sources16
Profile5
- 1
Air & Space Forces Magazine · Sep 30, 2026 · Supports Organization
“Anduril, Chaos Industries, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Grid Aero, Otto Aerospace, Shield AI, and Swarm Aero all made the cut to continue to develop their candidates for the Massed Modular Aircraft.”
- 2
Supports Organization · hq city
“GENERAL ATOMICS AERONAUTICAL SYSTEMS, INC is a federal contractor located in POWAY, CA”
- 3
Supports Organization · hq city
“Headquarters | Poway, California”
- 4
Supports Organization · founded year
“Established as a business on April 28, 1992, GA-ASI won its first contract award that same year”
- 5
Supports Organization · description, Organization · website
“Multi-Mission Remotely Piloted Aircraft”
Products7
- 6
Military Times · Sep 22, 2026 · Supports System
“using an MQ-20 Avenger surrogate aircraft”
- 7
Sep 10, 2026 · Supports System
“General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) is pleased to announce its groundbreaking *Wildfire* UAS”
- 8
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems · Jun 17, 2026 · Supports Government award, System
“General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has received a production contract from the U.S. Air Force (USAF) for the FQ-42A Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA).”
- 9
General Atomics · Nov 7, 2024 · Supports System
“MQ-20 is a jet-powered platform used extensively as a CCA surrogate test bed for autonomous UAS technology development.”
- 10Government recordAFRL’s XQ-67A makes 1st successful flight
Edwards Air Force Base (AFRL Public Affairs) · Feb 29, 2024 · Supports System
“The XQ-67A is the first of a second generation of autonomous collaborative platforms, or ACP.”
- 11
General Atomics · Jan 25, 2024 · Supports System
“conducted the first flight of the Gray Eagle 25M (GE-25M) Unmanned Aircraft System at its El Mirage, Calif. flight facility on Dec. 5, 2023.”
- 12CompanyMQ-9B SkyGuardian
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems · Supports System
“SkyGuardian is designed to fly over the horizon via satellite for up to 40+ hours in all types of weather and safely integrate into civil airspace”
Government4
- 13Government recordAir Force exercises two Collaborative Combat Aircraft option awards
Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs (Edwards AFB) · Apr 25, 2024 · Supports Government award
“The Department of the Air Force made the decision to continue funding Anduril and General Atomics for detailed designs, manufacture, and testing of production representative test articles under the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program.”
- 14Government recordContracts For Dec. 1, 2023
U.S. Department of War · Dec 1, 2023 · Supports Government award
“General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, was awarded a $389,000,000 fixed-price incentive contract for the purchase of MQ-1C-25M Gray Eagle Modernized Extended Range systems.”
- 15
USAspending.gov · Supports Government award · ceiling amount, Government award · description, Government award · end on, Government award · obligated amount, Government award · recipient, Government award · start on
“Base and all options value: $191,583,209.93”
- 16
USAspending.gov · Supports Government award · ceiling amount, Government award · description, Government award · end on, Government award · obligated amount, Government award · recipient, Government award · start on
“Base and all options value: $451,388,690.57”
Each fact on this page is attached to the sources that support it. Archived copies are linked when we keep one.