French Air Force Plans 2028 Loyal Wingman Flight in Sovereign AI Push

The French Air Force intends to fly a crewed fighter together with a combat drone in 2028 as part of a project called Hypairion, a programme meant to keep artificial intelligence for combat aircraft under French government control. Defense News reported the plan on 2 October 2026.

Mirage 2000s as test beds

The project involves the French Air Force, the Directorate General for Armament (DGA), the Ministerial Agency for Defence AI (Amiad) and Dassault Aviation, which is the primary contractor. Two Mirage 2000 fighters at Mont-de-Marsan Air Base are being modified to serve as AI test beds, with initial testing due to begin by the end of 2026.

Using the older Mirage 2000 for early trials looks like a pragmatic choice, since it lets engineers try autonomy and decision-support software on an ageing airframe before moving the technology towards the Rafale.

Open architecture, sovereign control

The central idea is an open, modular architecture for combat aircraft, in which the state keeps control of critical AI components rather than depending on proprietary systems owned by an industrial supplier. The Rafale already shows early signs of that openness. The current F4 standard includes tablet connectivity to the aircraft’s mission systems, which Defense News describes as an initial step towards openness. The DGA is targeting 2033 for the Rafale F5 standard, which is expected to bring much greater AI capability.

Practical uses

Planned applications include optimising flight paths, managing tactical weapons-release decisions and helping pilots identify targets. One example is the Talios laser-designation pod, whose deliveries are expected in 2027 and which could be a platform for target-recognition tools.

French military leaders expect computer scientists to become routine members of fighter squadrons within a few years, working alongside pilots and maintainers to update software in much the same way that armourers update weapon loads.

Context for European combat air

The announcement comes four months after Germany and France abandoned the plan for a shared crewed sixth-generation fighter under the FCAS programme. Hypairion shows France continuing a national path on manned-unmanned teaming even as the wider European picture is uncertain. The 2028 flight will be an early test of whether a French-controlled AI stack can run a drone wingman in real time, a capability the United States is already moving into production with its Collaborative Combat Aircraft programme.

Several questions remain open. Defense News did not report which drone will fly with the crewed aircraft in 2028, or what budget the project has. Those details will determine whether Hypairion remains a research demonstrator or becomes the foundation for a fielded French wingman.