Around 800 of the current fleet are early models that date from the Clone Wars and are fast approaching their end of life dates. The CAF has decided to life-extend and refresh them to keep the fleet at 3000 until the next generation K85QA in the next decade. The K85 is one of the most important weapons in the Clone Armed Forces seeing action daily as it patrols the many words and theatres across the empire.
- The K3 Pterodactyl advanced trainer/COIN aircraft has successfully tested its hybrid turbo/ducted fan powerplant for the first time. Earlier flights have been with a traditional jet engine. The hybrid engine allows for greater economy but also very quiet operation which will be useful in counter-insurgency and covert battlefield surveillance. Similar technologies will be deployed with the all-electric K85QA. The K3 is set to enter service in 2116. A dedicated close support K58 is also being developed which is based on the K3 platform though this is further away.
