First AI dogfight takes place
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https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/us-air-force-confirms-first-successful-ai-dogfight
The U.S. Air Force on Wednesday publicly confirmed the first successful dogfight between a fighter jet piloted by artificial intelligence (AI) and a human-piloted aircraft.
The AI-versus-human dogfight was carried out as part of the Air Combat Evolution (ACE) program that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) launched in 2019. The Air Force conducted the AI dogfights at Edwards Air Force Base in California, the home base of the 412th Test Wing.
The dogfight pitted a manned F-16 against the X-62A VISTA (Variable In-flight Simulator Test Aircraft), an experimental variant of the F-16, and leveraged live AI agents that were installed in the X-62A less than a year before.
"The potential for autonomous air-to-air combat has been imaginable for decades, but the reality has remained a distant dream up until now," Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said in a press release. "In 2023, the X-62A broke one of the most significant barriers in combat aviation. This is a transformational moment, all made possible by breakthrough accomplishments of the X-62A ACE team."
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Interesting that the Secretary of Air Force was in the AI Plane.
With the midday sun blazing, an experimental orange and white F-16 fighter jet launched with a familiar roar that is a hallmark of U.S. airpower. But the aerial combat that followed was unlike any other: This F-16 was controlled by artificial intelligence, not a human pilot. And riding in the front seat was Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall.
The AI-controlled F-16, called Vista, flew Kendall in lightning-fast maneuvers at more than 550 miles an hour that put pressure on his body at five times the force of gravity. It went nearly nose to nose with a second human-piloted F-16 as both aircraft raced within 1,000 feet of each other, twisting and looping to try force their opponent into vulnerable positions.
