If you’ve flown flight simulators or generally understand aircraft combat tactics, this video shows the future. Everything we know is about to change. It’s interesting all this is in public. The US military wants potential enemies to know what we’re up to.
This is video of trials (there are others) of work to test the concept of pilotless aircraft launched from aircraft carriers. The ability of a pilot to withstand Gs is the limiting factor on how tightly an aircraft can turn. Pilot protection, ejection seats, pressurization all add weight and consume space.
But If you no longer have to protect a pilot, is there any need for air to air combat at all? If the plane needs no air to air weapons and evades contact with the enemy, its capacity can be focused on delivering a payload or gathering information. If it gets shot down, we can make more. With smaller aircraft, the carrier can probably be much smaller and need fewer people.
Yes. It is the middle ground of a piloted plane an a missile. Missiles need to be able to take off and fly, but not to land safely.