21.07.2026
Anduril believes Thunder could serve as a loyal wingman platform for the Army's helicopter fleet, including the AH-64 Apache and the next-gen MV-75 Cheyenne II.
Credit: Anduril
With eyes on the future Army, Marine Corps and U.S. Special Operations Command missions, Anduril has developed an autonomous attack rotorcraft prototype designed to fly alongside military helicopters.
Unveiled on Monday during the Farnborough Air Show, Thunder is a group 5 unmanned tiltrotor helicopter that can function as a loyal wingman drone much like the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) being developed for fighter jets. According to Anduril President Chris Brose, the drone is specifically designed for “maneuver warfare” — like the tactical, air-ground littoral fights in Ukraine.
“Many of the things that we’ve designed and engineered into Thunder are really based on the lessons that the United States and our European allies are learning in Ukraine, and this whole question of how do you bring mass to the battlefield in a tactical environment where you have to be able to engage in the deep fight,” Brose told reporters Thursday ahead of the official unveiling.
Anduril has been working on Thunder for around three years and developed the drone alongside Archer Aviation, which specializes in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that can fly in dense, urban environments. Anduril’s variation is specifically targeted towards military customers, while Archer is expected to offer another iteration to commercial markets.
Brose said that Thunder is an ideal loyal wingman to manned helicopters like the Army’s AH-64 Apache and the forthcoming MV-75 Cheyenne II — the service’s next-generation tiltrotor aircraft — but that the company also had Marine Corps and SOCOM requirements in mind during development.
“In terms of how you get a greater quantity of sensors and weapons into the fight to support those manned systems, to support the ground force, to be able to conduct those long-range missions from a maneuver warfare standpoint, and really make maneuver central to warfare again — we really see Thunder being absolutely central to that,” he said.
Shane Arnott, senior vice president of programs and engineering at Anduril, noted that the drone has the range and speed of an MV-75 but the payload capacity of an Apache helicopter. The aircraft has two configurable payload bays that can carry a range of munitions, such as the AGM-114 Hellfire missile, Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) kits or the Army’s launched effects, he told reporters.
The aircraft’s autonomy package has been specifically designed to fly at high speeds and low-altitude environments with crowded terrain, obstacles and threats. Thunder is able to maneuver with manned and unmanned platforms, share real-time data and provide additional offensive and passive effects, Arnott said.
“We can have three to six of these things flying with an Apache to provide that loyal wingman nature, and doing so in a sense that is commanding and not controlling these systems,” he told reporters.
Anduril has already completed test flights using full-scale surrogate aircraft, and expects Thunder’s first flight to be sometime in 2027, Brose said. He emphasized that the company’s conversations with potential military customers have primarily been focused on their respective requirements and demonstrating that the platform could fill capability gaps in the future.
“I think the question of acquisition is something that we can sort out later,” Brose said. “The bigger question is to establish that there’s a need for it, and that this is something that is possible now that can be brought into the force quickly and can make a meaningful contribution fast.”
Quelle: DEFENSESCOOP