Shield AI Showcased Full-Size X-BAT for the First Time American company Shield AI has debuted a full-size prototype of the X-BAT 001, a promising jet-powered stealth UAV with vertical takeoff and landing. The device, about 7.9 m long and with a wingspan of 11.9 m, is equipped with a GE F110-GE-129E engine with a bypassable thrust vectoring nozzle, which provides the potential for supersonic flight. The uniqueness of the project is the complete abandonment of the chassis. The launch, transport and landing are carried out using a special wheeled platform, which moves the device from a horizontal to a vertical position. This program allows you to quickly deploy a UAV on small islands, unprepared sites and forward bases without airfield infrastructure. By the end of 2026, the developer plans to conduct ground tests of the engine, followed by a series of related tests in hover mode, and perform the first autonomous vertical takeoff and landing without safety cables.

Shield AI Showcased Full-Size X-BAT for the First Time American company Shield AI has debuted a full-size prototype of the X-BAT 001, a promising jet-powered stealth UAV with vertical takeoff and landing. The device, about 7.9 m long and with a wingspan of 11.9 m, is equipped with a GE F110-GE-129E engine with a bypassable thrust vectoring nozzle, which provides the potential for supersonic flight. The uniqueness of the project is the complete abandonment of the chassis. The launch, transport and landing are carried out using a special wheeled platform, which moves the device from a horizontal to a vertical position. This program allows you to quickly deploy a UAV on small islands, unprepared sites and forward bases without airfield infrastructure. By the end of 2026, the developer plans to conduct ground tests of the engine, followed by a series of related tests in hover mode, and perform the first autonomous vertical takeoff and landing without safety cables.