Australia MQ-28 Ghost Bat Drone Teams with E-7A and F/A-18F Fighter Jet in First Missile Engagement.

Boeing Australia confirmed that in December 2025, the MQ-28 Ghost Bat successfully teamed with a Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail and an F/A-18F Super Hornet during a missile engagement scenario. The demonstration signals Australia’s move from experimentation toward operational manned-unmanned air combat.

According to information published by Boeing Australia on February 4, 2026, the MQ-28 Ghost Bat uncrewed aircraft has reached a defining stage in its development after completing a complex missile engagement exercise alongside crewed Royal Australian Air Force platforms. The event paired the uncrewed aircraft with an E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning aircraft and an F/A-18F Super Hornet, forming a live, multi-platform combat architecture that defense officials describe as one of the most advanced collaborative combat demonstrations conducted by Australia to date.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link

The MQ-28 Ghost Bat launches a missile during a December 2025 engagement demonstration, marking a major milestone as the Australian uncrewed aircraft executes an active combat role within a manned-unmanned air combat formation. (Picture source: Boeing Australia)

The MQ-28 Ghost Bat is the first combat aircraft designed, engineered, and manufactured in Australia in more than half a century. Developed by Boeing Australia under the Airpower Teaming System program, the aircraft emerged from a close partnership between industry, the Australian government, and the Royal Australian Air Force, with Canberra providing early funding to de-risk development and accelerate timelines. The program has since transitioned from a technology demonstrator into a structured pathway toward operational capability, with the RAAF formally identifying MQ-28 as a future force element intended to enter service before the end of the decade.

Physically, the MQ-28 is a jet-powered uncrewed aircraft approximately 12 meters long, designed around a modular architecture that allows rapid reconfiguration of its nose section for different mission sets. These include intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; electronic warfare; communications relay; and combat support roles. Its most critical attribute, however, lies in its autonomous systems. The Ghost Bat is designed to operate with high levels of onboard decision-making, enabling it to sense threats, manage its mission, and respond dynamically in contested environments where human control may be limited or intermittent.

The December 2025 missile engagement demonstrated how this autonomy translates into combat relevance. Operating as part of a networked formation, the MQ-28 served as a forward-deployed sensor and mission-support node, extending the force's reach while remaining outside the most heavily defended areas. The E-7A Wedgetail provided command-and-control and battlespace management, fusing data from multiple sources, while the F/A-18F Super Hornet executed the missile engagement. The trial validated a distributed kill chain in which detection, tracking, decision-making, and engagement are shared across crewed and uncrewed platforms rather than concentrated in a single aircraft.

This concept aligns directly with the Royal Australian Air Force’s evolving doctrine for future air combat. Australian defense planning increasingly assumes that high-end conflicts will involve dense air defenses, electronic warfare, and long-range threats that heighten the risk to crewed aircraft. By integrating uncrewed aircraft like MQ-28 into frontline formations, the RAAF aims to preserve pilot survivability, expand sensor coverage, and complicate adversary targeting. The Ghost Bat is not intended to replace fighters such as the F-35A or F-A-18F, but to amplify their effectiveness as a loyal wingman and autonomous combat partner.

From a programmatic perspective, the MQ-28 has moved steadily toward formal acquisition. Boeing Australia has confirmed that multiple production-representative aircraft are now flying, incorporating lessons learned from earlier test vehicles. The Australian government has signaled long-term commitment through sustained funding and infrastructure investment, while Boeing has positioned the Ghost Bat as an exportable platform aligned with allied requirements. Although contract details for a full-rate production order have not been publicly disclosed, Australian officials have repeatedly stated that the goal is to achieve initial operational capability by 2028, making MQ-28 one of the earliest fielded Collaborative Combat Aircraft among Western air forces.

Australia’s progress must also be viewed in the context of a global race to develop uncrewed fighter aircraft and manned-unmanned teaming concepts. The United States is advancing rapidly under its Collaborative Combat Aircraft initiative, with the U.S. Air Force planning to acquire hundreds of autonomous drones to operate alongside F-22s, F-35s, and the future Next Generation Air Dominance platform. China has showcased uncrewed systems flying in formation with fifth-generation fighters, signaling similar ambitions, while Russia continues to test the S-70 Okhotnik-B alongside the Su-57, though operational maturity remains uncertain. European nations, through programs such as the UK-led LANCA concept and elements of the Future Combat Air System, are also investing heavily in loyal wingman technologies.

What differentiates the MQ-28 program is its emphasis on near-term operational integration rather than distant conceptual studies. The December 2025 missile-linked engagement was not a laboratory experiment but a realistic demonstration involving frontline aircraft and existing command-and-control systems. By proving that an autonomous uncrewed aircraft can meaningfully contribute to a live engagement without disrupting established tactics or command chains, Australia has positioned itself at the forefront of practical manned-unmanned air combat development.

Strategically, the Ghost Bat reflects a broader shift in Australian defense thinking. As regional airpower competition intensifies across the Indo-Pacific, Canberra is prioritizing systems that offer flexibility, scalability, and interoperability with coalition partners. The MQ-28 is designed to operate seamlessly with U.S. and allied forces, reinforcing Australia’s role as a technologically sophisticated partner capable of contributing advanced capabilities rather than relying solely on imported platforms.

The December 2025 demonstration, therefore, marks more than a successful test. It signals that the MQ-28 Ghost Bat is transitioning from an ambitious national project into a credible combat capability, one that embodies how future air wars are likely to be fought through networks of humans and machines operating together at speed and scale. For the Royal Australian Air Force, the path toward an operational uncrewed combat partner is no longer theoretical but firmly underway.

Written by Alain Servaes – Chief Editor, Army Recognition Group
Alain Servaes is a former infantry non-commissioned officer and the founder of Army Recognition. With over 20 years in defense journalism, he provides expert analysis on military equipment, NATO operations, and the global defense industry.