Moving Toward AI-Enabled Systems, Next-Gen UAVs, Rotorcraft

The U.S. Army is rapidly adopting technological and structural developments to become a “leaner, more lethal force” with aviation the focus of the revamp efforts. These involve expediting procurement of next-generation rotorcraft and UAVs and integration of AI-enabled systems while at the same time divesting itself of legacy manned aircraft in some units.

The reforms in aviation are part of a broader strategy directed by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to ensure the army’s capability of responding to rapidly-evolving threats, primarily in the Indo-Pacific region.

One of the main points of Army leadership is its emphasis on noting that legacy aircraft may no longer meet the requirements of future conflicts and that modernization in all segments of army operations must be accelerated.

The army was instructed to prioritize investments in air and missile defense, long-range precision fires, and counter-drone technologies, Hegseth said in a memo issued April 30, 2025. Alongside that memo, he announced the Army Transformation Initiative, which includes cancelling procurement of legacy aircraft such as the AH-64D Apache and the MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone.

The cancelled aircraft will be replaced by the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft to succeed the UH-60 Black Hawk. And Bell Textron’s V-280 Valor tiltrotor was selected in December 2022 under a $1.3 billion development contract with deliveries expected to begin by 2030.

The DoD has launched the Replicator initiative to field thousands of low-cost, expendable AI-enabled autonomous systems across land, air, and sea by late 2025. This project prioritizes what it calls “attritable” systems – that is, high-volume, low-cost drones that are expendable in contested environments. The Switchblade 600 loitering munition by AeroVironment is one of the initial candidates.

FMI:  www.army.mil/