Anduril YFQ-44 Fury arrives at Creech AFB for U.S. Air Force drone exercise

The Anduril YFQ-44 Fury serial 25-1003 landed at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, on the evening of July 20, 2026, after departing Southern California Logistics Airport in Victorville with a Learjet 35 chase aircraft. It marked the first known visit by the type to the base, which serves as the main U.S. hub for uncrewed aircraft operations.

From July 20 to 24 the Air Force Collaborative Combat Aircraft Experimental Operations Unit is running an Agile Combat Employment exercise at the base. Military operators are conducting end-to-end ground and flight operations for both the YFQ-44 Fury and the General Atomics YFQ-42 Dark Merlin.

The tests focus on operating the aircraft from austere locations with a minimal logistical footprint and on relocating between sites.

Observers from the Royal Netherlands Air Force are attending the exercise. A U.S. Air Force spokesperson said the CCA Experimental Operations Unit was established to conduct trials that operationalize CCA capabilities and that testing occurs at both government and contractor facilities to evaluate performance in realistic scenarios.

Both aircraft were selected for production under the CCA Increment One program. The same YFQ-44 Fury serial 25-1003 previously conducted the first American CCA air-to-air missile firing, an end-to-end beyond-line-of-sight strike against a simulated target, from Edwards Air Force Base. A comparable ACE exercise took place at Edwards Air Force Base in April 2026 with only the YFQ-44 present.

The YFQ-42 had been grounded after an accident and has since resumed flight operations. The Experimental Operations Unit had earlier tested ACE concepts in the Pacific with the Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat during Exercise Valiant Shield.