"That was the 'first step' in integrating CCAs into the force," Glen Ferguson, Boeing Defense Australia’s MQ-28 global programs director, told reporters, describing the Ghost Bat's role in last month's large Pacific exercise.
Valiant Shield: MQ-28 Ghost Bat operates with U.S. and allied aircraft
The MQ-28 Ghost Bat, developed by Boeing for the Royal Australian Air Force, flew last month alongside U.S. and allied forces in Valiant Shield, a major training exercise staged in the Northern Mariana Islands. Boeing said the platform flew in formation or mission sets with a broad set of crewed aircraft: F-35s, F-15EX, HC-130, E-3, E-2D, EA-18G, and RC-135 aircraft. Boeing described the appearance as the first and only deployment of a collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) to a multinational, joint operational exercise.
Boeing and U.S. military voices on human‑machine teaming
Boeing framed the Valiant Shield deployment as an early demonstration of human‑machine teaming. In a company news release, Steve Parker, Boeing Defense, Space and Security’s president and CEO, said: "Having MQ-28 participate in such a significant military training exercise is a first, and this is just the start of demonstrating how advanced human‑machine teaming extends the reach and awareness of crewed platforms and enhances joint force operations." The U.S. Air Force also issued a release highlighting the exercise; Maj. Daniel Pesich, the Experimental Operations Unit’s collaborative combat aircraft detachment officer in charge, stated, "By advancing human‑machine teaming, we are increasing our power projection while building a more resilient, capable, and lethal joint force."
Where Boeing stands in the U.S. CCA competition
Two years ago the U.S. Air Force stopped considering Boeing for the first increment of its CCA program. In June, the Air Force awarded initial-production contracts to Anduril and General Atomics for that first increment. The service began funding development for a second iteration of CCAs late last year; it is not publicly known whether Boeing is part of that second increment and Ferguson declined to comment on increment two. U.S. officials have said they plan to field the first 100 operational CCAs by 2029.
Germany's procurement path and industrial teaming on Ghost Bat
Other countries are pursuing similar programs. Germany’s Bundeswehr plans to field its first operational drone wingmen by 2029, and earlier this year Rheinmetall and Boeing Australia teamed to offer the Ghost Bat as Germany’s drone wingman candidate. That partnership expanded last month to include Diehl Defence and Rohde & Schwarz, and on Tuesday HENSOLDT announced it joined Boeing’s Ghost Bat industry team. Boeing also noted that the Royal Australian Air Force has current Ghost Bat orders.
What this means for U.S. Indo‑Pacific Command, the Royal Australian Air Force, and the German Bundeswehr
- U.S. Indo‑Pacific Command: According to Boeing’s account of the exercise, Navy Adm. Sam Paparo, the head of U.S. Indo‑Pacific Command, welcomed having a CCA flying in the region; Boeing reported that U.S. government feedback was that officials "were very happy to have a CCA in the Pacific theater."
- Royal Australian Air Force: Boeing signaled plans to apply the MQ-28 into multinational exercises as an operational capability to test tactics, pointing to upcoming large exercises such as Talisman Saber as future opportunities to integrate the Ghost Bat into force operations.
- German Bundeswehr: Germany is moving to field drone wingmen by 2029 and has seen a growing industrial coalition offering the Ghost Bat, adding German systems integrators and electronics firms to Boeing’s team as the country evaluates options.
The Ghost Bat's Valiant Shield appearance is both a practical demonstration and a signaling event: Boeing and Australian officials presented it as the beginning of operationalizing collaborative combat aircraft in multinational settings, even as procurement programs in the United States have taken a different path. The next concrete markers to watch are whether Boeing joins the Air Force's second‑increment funding and how Ghost Bat participation scales at large regional exercises such as Talisman Saber—opportunities Boeing's MQ-28 global programs director explicitly named as likely follow-ups.
