by Kris Osborn, Warrior
(National Harbor, Md) - The explosive arrival of the US Air Force F-47 6th-generation stealth aircraft is quickly gaining notoriety and inspiring speculation and mystery regarding its performance parameters. As part of this overall equation, the F-47 aircraft is also receiving attention for the fast-growing fleet of loyal wingman drones it will operate from the cockpit. Several Collaborative Combat Aircraft drones, as they are called, have been airborne en route to operating as surveillance and attack drones built as part of the F-47s 6th-generation "family of systems."
The Air Force has been quite deliberate about its development of these CCAs, prioritizing development of drone that can be quickly and easily manufactured at scale at minimal cost. The Concept of Operation here is quite clear, as a manned F-47 host 6th-gen aircraft will be preserved, protected and empowered by the low-cost attritable wingman drones it operates.
For several years now, industry has been surging with drone and engine technology in a race to support the 6th-gen effort; Several prototype CCAs, Anduril's YFQ-44A and General Atomics YFQ-42A, are surging toward operational status. General Atomics YFQ-42A took its first flight in August and Anduril's is expected to be airborne in October, 2025.
Engines are not far behind.
Honeywell HON1600
Fast, fuel-efficient, high-thrust, low-cost and "attritable" are a few of the terms intended to describe Honeywell Aerospace's newly unveiled HON1600 drone engine, a small-thrust-class engine intended for mass production to support the Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs).
"Our engine is capable for 1,800 to 1,200 pounds of thrust" TJ Pope, Director of Engine Growth, Honeywell Aerospace, told Warrior at the 2026 Air Force Association Symposium.
The intent with the engine, Pope explained, is to leverage Honeywell's engine expertise and production capacity to offer high-performing, yet low-cost engines "at scale" for the large numbers of CCAs expected to support a fleet of F-47s.
"This engine is very similar to an APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) we might find in a 737 or H320 aircraft. We make about 2,500 of those a year at Honeywell.... so we can leverage that supply chain and that manufacturing capability to produce these engines," Pope said.
HON1600 specs state the engine supports turbojet or turbofan variants from 800-to-1600 pound force-thrust and 40,000-feet high altitude capabilities. A Honeywell essay on the engine adds that the HON1600 is engineered for "rigorous G-level performance and ability to reach maneuvering targets."
Pope explained that the engineering process for the HON1600 involved extensive analysis of composite materials along with cost, weight and performance variables to pursue a product that would deliver manufacturable performance. Honeywell used digital engineering as part of its development of the HON1600, a process through which performance parameters and design possibilities are carefully and fully assess through computer simulations. The intent with digital engineering, which has been used with success in a variety of systems such as the Sentinel ICBM and F-47, is to leverage advanced computer technology to make critical discernments before having to "bend metal."
"We used model-based engineering and digital engineering to integrating the newest in manufacturing technology with fabric manufacturing and metal injection molding. We combined what's old and what's new to really deliver a more fire-resistant engine," Pope said.
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University