SpaceX CEO Elon Musk told a room full of U.S. Air Force pilots last week that “the fighter jet era has passed,” as CNBC reports. Referring to the fact that remotely-controlled drones — and not extremely expensive fighter jets — are the future.
Musk also argued that the American F-35 fighter jet, developed by Lockheed Martin, should have some competition. The jet has cost the Pentagon — and taxpayers — over a trillion dollars to develop. The latest iteration of the F-35 has been steeped in problems, getting abysmal results during recent testing.
“The competitor should be a drone fighter plane that’s remote-controlled by a human, but with its maneuvers augmented by autonomy,” Musk wrote in a Friday follow-up tweet. “The F-35 would have no chance against it.”
Musk also warned that China’s economy could eventually dwarf the US’s — and could thereby gain the upper hand in space.
“This is not something that was a risk in times past but is a risk now,” Musk said at Friday’s event. “I have zero doubt that if the United States doesn’t seek innovation in space it will be second in space.”
