February 17, 2026 at 8:53 PM
LongShot program eyes new target for early flight tests
The first flight test for the X-68A was originally set to begin in December of 2023, Breaking Defense previously reported.
Artist's concept: Notional scenario of LongShot aircraft releasing air-to-air missiles. (Colie Wertz/DARPA) WASHINGTON — General Atomics’ LongShot program is aiming to have its first flight test “as early as the end of 2026,” — three years after the company first said tests would begin, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced today. DARPA views LongShot — an unmanned aircraft system dropped from a bomber or fighter that can launch missiles of its own — as potentially useful for both the Air Force and Navy.
Dubbed the X-68A, the aircraft has completed a series of milestone tests and trials bringing the platform “closer to flight testing,” the statement says. The flight tests are set to demonstrate the X-68A’s capability to be launched from an F-15. The first flight test for the X-68A was originally set to begin in December of 2023, Breaking Defense previously reported.