It seems that bombing still remains the most in-demand task for the airforce (fighters included). Should that be done by AI too?
The new air threat appears to stem from the ability to fit nuclear power sources onboard of cruise missiles. Which basically turns each such missile into a very determined UCAV. Kind of revisiting the project Pluto [1].
I think the implication / fallout is much more paradigm changing. Impact on order of dreadnought invalidating pre-dreadnought fleets. Competent AI pilot -> autonomous vehicles with more extreme flight performance -> dramatically reduced anti-air capabilities. A UAV without meatbag limits / more fuel = an extremely performant missile that will be significantly more challenging to intercept to the point where anti-air might no longer be viable.
This tech gap = lesser adversaries with generation meatbag hardware get disproportionately stomped harder. But it's a capability reset among peer adversaries with pursuing similar technology, i.e. next gen UAV could make manned aircraft obsolete. Imagine scenario where two sides (US / CN) can have mutual air superiority because future UAVs can no longer be effectively challenged. If the only viable tactic is offense, then engagements shift to numbers games, which will favor whoever can field more in theatre which translates to reduction of viability of carrier based naval power projection. 50 years of US manned naval and aviation buildup and expertise could become obsolete the same way UK's massive pre-dreadnaught navy became obsolete, a technical reset that enabled Germany navy to catch up closer to parity via arms race.
The flight dynamics model won't have any data points for large parts of the flight envelope, so if your robo pilot exceeds tested limits we don't know what will happen, or even if control is recoverable. Experienced pilots certainly understand dynamic performance better than state space models -- the original learning platform! People learn jets in 100 hours, it remains to be seen how much training a machine takes.
Pulling 12G all the time also imposes stresses on the platforms that they were not designed for, so you'd probably want to ration that.
What I'm getting at is that sustainment of operations is as big a problem as individual engagements. You can loose a whole campaign by responding too heavily (or weakly!) to feints and probing.