DARPA’s Collaborative Operations in Denied Environment (CODE) programme has demonstrated the ability of CODE-equipped UAS to adapt and respond to unexpected threats in an anti-access area denial environment.

In a recent test series at Yuma Proving Ground, the test UAS efficiently shared information, cooperatively planned and allocated mission objectives, made coordinated tactical decisions, and collaboratively reacted to a dynamic, high-threat environment with minimal communication.

The air vehicles initially operated with supervisory mission commander interaction. When communications were degraded or denied, CODE vehicles retained mission plan intent to accomplish mission objectives without live human direction. The ability for CODE-enabled vehicles to interact when communications are degraded is an important step toward the programme goal of conducting dynamic, long-distance engagements of highly mobile ground and maritime targets in contested or denied battlespace.

During the three-week ground and flight test series in a live/virtual/constructive environment, up to six live and 24 virtual UAS served as surrogate strike assets, receiving mission objectives from a human mission commander. The systems then autonomously collaborated to navigate, search, localise and engage both pre-planned and pop-up targets protected by a simulated integrated air defence system in communications- and GPS-denied scenarios.

Further development of CODE and associated infrastructure will continue under DARPA until the conclusion of the programme in spring 2019, followed by full transition of the CODE software repository to the US Naval Air Systems Command.