Anduril marks Arsenal-1 milestone with first YFQ-44A production drone
Anduril has unveiled its first YFQ-44A loyal wingman drone built at its new Arsenal-1 facility in Ohio. This comes a month after the US Air Force awarded contracts to Anduril and General Atomics, as well as Shield AI and Collins, to start manufacturing Increment 1 CCA drones.
Anduril unveiled the first serial production FQ-44 CCA
Today, the major start-up US aerospace contractor, Anduril, posted, “557 days ago, Arsenal-1 didn’t exist. Today, the first YFQ-44A built in Ohio rolled off the production line.”
557 days ago, Arsenal-1 didn't exist. Today, the first YFQ-44A built in Ohio rolled off the production line. pic.twitter.com/zVM8i75vrW
— Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) July 28, 2026
The development is a significant milestone as the US Air Force moves to bring Increment 1 Collaborative Combat Aircraft into service by the end of the decade.
Ohio state governor, Governor Mike DeWine, was at the ceremony; he posted, “It was remarkable to watch @anduriltech ‘s first Ohio-made, unmanned combat aircraft roll off the production line at Arsenal-1 in Pickaway County this morning”
DeWine also called Ohio the “aerospace capital of the world.”
The first drone or product from Anduril’s Arsenal-1 factory
The YFQ-44 is the first aircraft constructed at Anduril’s new Arsenal-1 facility in Pickaway County, Ohio. The earlier prototypes were built at Anduril’s California facilities.
It was remarkable to watch @anduriltech's first Ohio-made, unmanned combat aircraft roll off the production line at Arsenal-1 in Pickaway County this morning. Congratulations to everyone involved in this significant milestone for national defense! pic.twitter.com/arka9TgkRf
— Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) July 27, 2026
Only 18 months lapsed from Anduril’s announcement that it would build its first structure on the 500-acre site to the first drone rolling off the production line. The company plans to produce 150 of these drones annually at the facility.
WOSU reported, “The Arsenal-1 facility received a state record $310 million grant from JobsOhio. It’s expected to create 4,000 jobs by 2035, when the facility is completed.”
The publication also noted that the main hangar where the first Fury drone was built is not yet complete, while the second building, Anduril, which is under construction across the street, is still a shell.
In January 2026, Anduril stated, “Construction on Building 1 is well underway and will encompass 775,000 square feet of production space and 120,000 additional square feet of office and support space. We broke ground on Building 2 (924,000+ sq ft) last summer.”
Anduril also reported that it had finalized the full site plan, locking in a 10-year buildout that will bring the new facility to scale by 2035.
From Increment 1 to Increment 2
The Air Force is rushing to develop the initial Increment 1 CCA so that it can move on to developing the much more capable and long-ranged Increment 2.
Andruil and General Atomics won the contract to develop their FQ-44 and FQ-42 combat drones for Increment 1, powered by Shield AI’s Hivemind and Collins’ Sidekick, respectively.
While it’s considered an advantage to be selected for Increment 1, it is not a deal-breaker when bidding for the more important Increment 2.
Besides Andruil and General Atomics, Boeing (with MQ-28 Ghost Bat), Lockheed Martin (Vectis), Northrop Grumman (YFQ-48 Talon), Shield AI (X-Bat), and Hermeus (Darkhorse) are all competing for Increment 2.
With Increment 1, the Air Force prioritized good enough capability with speed of development and lower cost.
That said, the rail-launched Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie (used for experimentation by the Air Force) was considered not capable enough. The US Marines have selected a modified version as their Increment 1 CCA drone.
