Unmanned autonomous air-to-air refueling intelligent docking technology

Unmanned autonomous Air-to-Air Refueling (AAR) capability is the key guarantee to support the distant-field, high-intensity and durable operations of the penetration counterair combat system. In the future, the long-range unmanned reconnaissance and attack platform can reach the maximum flight range requirement through AAR. At present, large transport aircraft platforms in China are still equipped with probe-and-drogue systems, and the refueling mode is gradually changing from manned to unmanned autonomous operation. The docking process is the riskiest and most important part, and there are strict safety, precision, and efficiency requirements for refueling operation, especially during close-distance docking and formation maintenance phases. In this paper, five issues that need to be solved to achieve autonomous AAR docking are summarized. On this basis, five key technology development needs are proposed to solve these engineering issues. Finally, some prospects are given.