Piloted flights and autonomy tests began recently for modified F-16s that allows artificial intelligence agents to fly the aircraft.
"Let the AI do it," a former Air Force secretary said this week, pitting machines against human operators.
Capt. Nathanial “Icarus” Welch received the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor for his actions during a 2025 Operation Rough Rider mission.
The hearing comes on the heels of a Government Accountability Office report this month that found just one in four F-35s were fully mission capable.
