CINCINNATI (July 20, 2026) — GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) and Shield AI have successfully completed integration, actuation, and engine light-off testing of the advanced Axisymmetric Vectoring Exhaust Nozzle (AVEN) for Shield AI’s X-BAT aircraft, a critical milestone in the program’s path to vertical flight.

Engineers from both companies modified and integrated the AVEN into GE Aerospace’s F110-GE-129E engine, then completed functional checkouts and engine light-off to verify system performance at GE Aerospace’s test operations site in Peebles, Ohio. This is the first fully integrated test campaign of its kind since the 1990s, bringing AVEN’s hardware, controls, and engine systems together to execute coordinated nozzle movement sequences using defined test protocols.

“X-BAT is designed to take off and land vertically from anywhere — no airbase, no runway — and that capability lives or dies with propulsion,” said Armor Harris, senior vice president of aircraft engineering at Shield AI. “The AVEN is what makes vertical flight possible on a platform this size and this capable. We’re applying it differently than it was ever used before. Vertical flight requires fast gimbaling to maintain attitude control, a demand the original program never had to meet. Taking hardware with a flight-proven track record and adapting it for that mission has let us move through development at an incredible pace instead of starting from zero. Completing this integration in a short timeframe shows what these combined teams can do. The next step is iterating on our propulsion approach to make future versions faster, lighter, and more capable.”

The AVEN provides thrust vectoring capability for vertical flight, launch, and landing. Originally designed for a multi-axis thrust vectoring program that flew on an F-16 in the 1990s, the nozzle accumulated 73 hours of ground testing and 135 flight hours across 95 flights during its original development program. As part of the X-BAT program, the hardware was refurbished and returned to operation. Following refurbishment, AVEN is now undergoing ground testing in preparation for flight test aboard the X-BAT prototype.

“The integration of AVEN into our F110-GE-129E engine and a successful light off represents a full-circle moment for our GE Aerospace team. By combining our proven experience in developing propulsion systems with Shield AI’s next-generation vehicle development, we are integrating the best of past, present, and future products to create a revolutionary aircraft,” said Doogie Russell, vice president of Edison Works at GE Aerospace.

X-BAT is built to solve the operational problems facing today’s forces: contested airspace, vulnerable runways, and the need for aircraft that can fly long distances while carrying a heavy weapons load. It’s a long-range, survivable, AI-piloted strike fighter that takes off and lands vertically, so it can operate from ships, islands, or remote sites without runways or support infrastructure. Powered by Shield AI’s Hivemind autonomy software, X-BAT can fly independently or as part of a force package alongside crewed aircraft.

X-BAT is sized to carry weapons up to the 2,000-pound class internally in each bay, with bays comparable in size to the F-35’s. It generates 80 kilowatts of electrical power, enough to run electronic warfare suites — allowing it to act autonomously as a jammer  —along with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) payloads and active and passive radar modes. With a combat radius of 1,000 nautical miles, X-BAT begins flight testing later this year.

In November 2025, Shield AI selected GE Aerospace to provide the engine, propulsion, and testing support for the X-BAT program. GE Aerospace’s F110 engine has more than 11 million flight hours, the most thrust in its class, and recently marked 40 years of continuous production and improvement.

About GE Aerospace: 
GE Aerospace is a global aerospace propulsion, services, and systems leader with an installed base of approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military aircraft engines. With a global team of approximately 57,000 employees building on more than a century of innovation and learning, GE Aerospace is committed to inventing the future of flight, lifting people up, and bringing them home safely. Learn more about how GE Aerospace and its partners are defining flight for today, tomorrow, and the future at www.geaerospace.com.

About Shield AI:
Founded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Media Contacts:
GE Aerospace
Deb Case
[email protected]
+1-513-418-1644

Shield AI
Lily Hinz
[email protected]