Four Loyal Wingman Contenders Face Off at ILA Berlin for Germany's 2029 CCA Contract

Four combat drones converged on Berlin this week, each chasing the same objective: a contract to become Germany's robotic wingman before 2029.

The 2026 ILA Berlin Air Show, running June 10–12, has effectively become an open audition for the German Air Force, with a German start-up and American aerospace giants parking their unmanned jets side by side. Looming over every conversation is a hard deadline driven by warnings that Russia could be ready to strike NATO before the decade is out.

What Is Germany Looking For?

Germany is seeking a Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) — the "loyal wingman" concept — an uncrewed jet that flies alongside a piloted aircraft carrying additional sensors, weapons, or jamming equipment. The German Air Force has stated an explicit goal of fielding such a capability by 2029.

That date is not arbitrary. Germany's Defence Minister has warned that Russia could be ready to attack NATO by 2029, and any CCA deployment must precede that risk window.

There is also a bridging logic at play. Germany is a partner in the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) — the Franco-German-Spanish sixth-generation fighter programme — but that aircraft will not arrive until the 2040s. A CCA fielded before 2029 would fill the long gap before FCAS materialises, which is why near-production-ready designs carry a significant advantage in this competition.

The German government has so far stayed tightly guarded on specifics. The Defence Ministry has stated it cannot comment on procurement matters ahead of parliamentary deliberations, leaving competitors to make their individual cases publicly — and Berlin this week provided exactly that stage.

The Four Contenders

Helsing, a German defence AI start-up, positioned its CA-1 Europa near the entrance of the exhibition hall. The company used the air show to split the design into two distinct roles: the CA-1KA for kinetic strike missions, and the newly unveiled CA-1EA, an electronic attack variant positioned as Europe's answer to the EA-18G Growler. Helsing says the kinetic strike version is on track for its first flight in early 2027.

Boeing, partnered with German industrial heavyweight Rheinmetall, brought the MQ-28 Ghost Bat. The variant offered to Germany features a 25% larger wingspan and approximately 2,000 lb (907 kg) of additional fuel, payload, and carriage capacity — enough to carry two AMRAAMs or four Small Diameter Bombs internally. The programme has accumulated more than 200 flight hours to date.

Airbus made the public debut of a full-scale model of the U760 Ravenstorm. Airbus is collaborating with U.S. firm Kratos and has agreed to purchase two XQ-58A Valkyrie drones for adaptation to European requirements.

General Atomics displayed a full-scale Gambit, from the same family as the YFQ-42A the company is developing for the U.S. Air Force CCA programme. Company spokesman C. Mark Brinkley pitched the aircraft aggressively, calling it the most advanced CCA in the world and stating that no additional development phase would be required to enter the competition.

Domestic Steel vs. American Iron

Two of the four bidders are flying a German flag — a factor that matters enormously in national procurement. Helsing is a pure-play German company. Boeing's Ghost Bat is deeply tied to Rheinmetall, Germany's largest arms manufacturer. When the war being contemplated is one fought on European soil, "made and built locally" is a powerful sales argument.

The other two carry a more American identity. Airbus has European heritage, but the Ravenstorm is a joint product built around Kratos and its Valkyrie drone. General Atomics offers the Gambit from the same lineage as the aircraft the U.S. Air Force has already selected domestically. Both bring proven hardware, but neither can replicate Rheinmetall's ability to locate production facilities on German soil.

General Atomics is not without confidence in the competitive landscape. The U.S. Air Force selected the YFQ-42A in the first round of its own CCA programme, alongside Anduril's YFQ-44A Fury. That prior selection is central to General Atomics' entire pitch: an unmanned aircraft already validated by a major air force.

Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger placed the time pressure front and centre. He stated that if Germany wants the aircraft by 2029, production work must begin no later than next year.

The 2029 Countdown

As Breaking Defense has reported, everything here orbits the same number. Germany's Defence Minister has warned that Russia could be ready to strike NATO by 2029, and the CCA is meant to be operational before that window opens.

The concept itself is no longer theoretical. Ukraine has turned low-cost drones into everyday combat tools, and Europe's lesson from watching that conflict has been clear: unmanned systems are not a sideshow experiment — they are central to the next war. A CCA flying alongside a Eurofighter Typhoon or F-35 can multiply a single pilot's combat effectiveness without putting a second crew member at risk.

Germany has not yet made its choice. The Defence Ministry will not discuss procurement ahead of parliamentary proceedings, so for now these aircraft remain on static display, waiting for a decision that a calendar is steadily forcing.

Industry Outlook

Ukraine has quietly become the reference point against which the rest of the world measures drone warfare — the place where unmanned combat doctrine is being written and where militaries are now sending personnel to learn. The CCA market represents the next major frontier in aerial defence, and four sharply different bets just lined up in Berlin to compete for it.

Helsing carries the German flag. Boeing paired with Rheinmetall means production could stay on German soil. The other two offer American hardware with proven procurement pedigrees wrapped in European packaging. The question hanging over all of it — the one no one on the show floor will answer publicly — is whether industrial sovereignty wins when the war being contemplated is on your own continent, or whether a drone that has already passed someone else's tests carries the day.

Image credits: Breaking Defense

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