The U.S. Air Force is looking into the possibility of hosting an event to test off-the-shelf light aircraft designed for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, Defense News reported Thursday.
Gen. Mike Holmes, head of the Air Combat Command, told Defense News that the service branch’s leaders will examine if light ISR attack planes have the potential to aid surveillance missions in a permissive environment and if such aircraft cost less than current platforms such the MQ-9 Reaper.
Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, chief of the Air Force Materiel Command, said a light ISR demonstration can offer the service branch an opportunity to experiment with open mission systems.
Pawlikowksi added adopting an ISR platform may also provide a path to increase collaboration between the Air Force and other service branches.