GE Aerospace has chosen its Merlin AI "co‑pilot" to augment operations on KC‑135 tankers and C‑130J transports, and is pursuing a KC‑135 cockpit (CCR) upgrade. In the near term Merlin could replace one of the two crew now required; the long‑term aim is autonomous, complex missions.
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Briefing
GE's selection of Merlin signals a concrete move toward reducing onboard crew requirements — the system could replace one of the two crew currently required on KC‑135 and C‑130J aircraft, with implications for crewing models, training and operating costs. See recent reporting on the broader KC‑135 fleet context: https://hype.aero/?story=13f68f0f-21be-453e-8c26-effe9a6bd779 and AFRL's push toward autonomous tanker refuelling: https://hype.aero/?story=3abb09e3-bea3-43aa-a520-75c074a49fc2
The move accelerates the defence sector's transition to human‑machine teaming and operational autonomy, building on industry debates over ethics, safety and regulation and on prior demonstrators of airborne AI control. Relevant background: https://hype.aero/?story=191a77d3-1955-4bc9-967f-227d3dc1ec43, https://hype.aero/?story=1b5ff0a8-0243-4632-90f5-479575d025ff and GE's wider AI deployment across MRO and operations: https://hype.aero/?story=da9a15bf-6c1b-4d35-b0e5-44fa113f04f1
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Merlin and GE Aerospace Ink Partnership for Flight Autonomy • tectonicdefense.com
Breaking Defense
• Sydney J Freedberg Jr