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Analysts say China has developed a frightening strategy for waging war against the United States: destroying American fighter jets before they even leave the ground.
In almost every modern conflict, neutralizing enemy aircraft on the ground has been the first step. When Israel struck Iranian nuclear sites earlier this year, it began by destroying Iranian airstrips, grounding Tehran’s air force before it could take off. Russia and Ukraine have done the same throughout their ongoing war, targeting airfields to cripple enemy aircraft. And when India clashed with Pakistan, the first salvos hit Pakistani air bases.
Beijing has taken this lesson to heart. THE People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has spent years building an arsenal of long-range precision missiles – including “carrier killers” like the DF-21D and DF-26 – capable of destroying American aircraft carriers and striking American airfields across the Pacific. The goal: to keep American air power out of reach before it can even be launched.
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Shield AI unveils its X-BAT AI fighter jet.
Now a US defense technology company says it has found a way to fight back. San Diego-based Shield AI has unveiled a new AI-piloted fighter jet designed to operate without tracks, without GPS and without constant communications links: a plane that can think, fly and fight alone.
Shield AI claims the jet, called X-BAT, can take off vertically, reach 50,000 feet, travel more than 2,000 nautical miles and execute strike or air defense missions using an onboard autonomy system known as Hivemind. It is designed to operate from ships, small islands or improvised sites, places inaccessible to traditional jet aircraft. The aircraft’s top speed remains classified.
“China has built this air access denial bubble that puts our runways at risk,” Armor Harris, senior vice president of aviation engineering at Shield AI, said in an interview with Fox News. “Basically, they said, ‘We’re not going to compete stealth versus stealth in the air – we’ll target your planes before they even take off from the ground.’
The jet launches vertically and three X-BATs can fit in the space of an existing fighter or helicopter.
According to Harris, the United States has spent decades perfecting its stealth and survivability in the air while leaving its forces vulnerable on the ground. “The way to solve this problem is mobility,” he said. “You’re always on the move. It’s the only VTOL fighter built today.”
The X-BAT’s Hivemind autonomy allows it to operate in prohibited or congested environments, where traditional aircraft would be blind. The system uses onboard sensors to interpret its environment, circumvent threats and identify targets in real time. “It’s about reading and reacting to the situation around you,” Harris said. “It doesn’t follow a pre-programmed route. If new threats appear, it can reorient itself or identify targets, then ask a human for permission to engage.”
This human element, he stressed, remains essential. “It’s very important to us that a human being is always involved in the decision to use deadly force,” Harris said. “This doesn’t mean the person has to be in the cockpit – it can be remote or delegated via tasks – but there will always be a human decision maker.”
According to the company, three X-BAT fighter jets can fit in the space of a traditional fighter jet or helicopter. (AI Shield)
Shield AI claims the X-BAT will be combat ready by 2029 and is designed to deliver fifth or sixth generation performance at a small fraction of the cost of manned fighters. The aircraft’s compact footprint allows up to three X-BATs to fit within the deck space of a single existing fighter or helicopter, providing commanders more flexibility to launch sorties from limited space.
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The AI fighter jet is designed to be able to take off vertically from the sea, from a restricted mobile space or on the ground. (AI Shield)
Although Shield AI does not release specific numbers, the company says the X-BAT is priced in the same range as the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program, the next generation of Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). independent wingers intended to fly alongside – and possibly in front of – manned fighters. Costs vary depending on systems and mission configurations, but the company’s goal is to increase production to keep the aircraft affordable and durable throughout its life cycle, breaking what it calls the traditional “fighter cost curve.”
The company estimates the aircraft will offer a cost per effect approximately ten times that of traditional fifth-generation jets, including the F-35, while remaining “affordable and attritable” enough to be risky in high-end combat.
Designed with potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific in mind, which would require some maneuverability over small island chains. (AI Shield)
Shield AI is in discussions with the Air Force and Navy about integrating X-BAT into future combat programs and with several allied militaries exploring joint development opportunities.
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Harris said the company sees X-BAT as part of a generational shift toward distributed air power — a shift that mirrors what SpaceX has done in space. “Historically, the United States has had a small number of extremely capable and extremely expensive satellites,” he said. “Then SpaceX came along and built hundreds of smaller, cheaper platforms. The same thing is happening in air power. Manned platforms will always have a role to play, but over time unmanned systems will outnumber them ten to one or twenty to one.”
For Harris, this change concerns restore deterrence through flexibility. “X-BAT presents an asymmetric dilemma to an adversary like China,” he said. “They don’t know where it’s coming from, and the cost of fighting it is high. This is an important part of a larger joint force that’s becoming much more lethal.
