mlsanityData to 14 Oct 2026

Intent-Context Synergy Reinforcement Learning for Autonomous UAV Decision-Making in Air Combat

arXiv 2603.00974 ↗First posted 1 Mar 2026cs.LG cs.SY eess.SYcited by 0

On the map: Deep reinforcement learning methods → RL for robot navigation and UAV control

Abstract (arXiv)

Autonomous UAV infiltration in dynamic contested environments remains a significant challenge due to the partially observable nature of threats and the conflicting objectives of mission efficiency versus survivability. Traditional Reinforcement Learning (RL) approaches often suffer from myopic decision-making and struggle to balance these trade-offs in real-time. To address these limitations, this paper proposes an Intent-Context Synergy Reinforcement Learning (ICS-RL) framework. The framework introduces two core innovations: (1) An LSTM-based Intent Prediction Module that forecasts the future trajectories of hostile units, transforming the decision paradigm from reactive avoidance to proactive planning via state augmentation; (2) A Context-Analysis Synergy Mechanism that decomposes the mission into hierarchical sub-tasks (safe cruise, stealth planning, and hostile breakthrough). We design a heterogeneous ensemble of Dueling DQN agents, each specialized in a specific tactical context. A dynamic switching controller based on Max-Advantage values seamlessly integrates these agents, allowing the UAV to adaptively select the optimal policy without hard-coded rules. Extensive simulations demonstrate that ICS-RL significantly outperforms baselines (Standard DDQN) and traditional methods (PSO, Game Theory). The proposed method achieves a mission success rate of 88% and reduces the average exposure frequency to 0.24 per episode, validating its superiority in ensuring robust and stealthy penetration in high-dynamic scenarios.

Key facts. No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026). Placed in RL for robot navigation and UAV control, one of 15 directions in Deep reinforcement learning methods. Builds on 3 of its 34 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 1 Mar 2026.

Builds on

3 of 34 references.

References · 3

  1. 2019Reinforcement Learning in Multiple-UAV Networks: Deployment and Movement Designcited by 13
  2. 2023Q-Learning based system for path planning with unmanned aerial vehicles swarms in obstacle environmentscited by 4
  3. 2018Nonlinear PID Controller Design for a 6-DOF UAV Quadrotor Systemcited by 1

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  3. 2025Enhancing Aerial Combat Tactics through Hierarchical Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning
  4. 2024Intercepting Unauthorized Aerial Robots in Controlled Airspace Using Reinforcement Learning
  5. 2025Reinforcement Learning for Decision-Level Interception Prioritization in Drone Swarm Defense
  6. 2026Separation Assurance between Heterogeneous Fleets of Small Unmanned Aerial Systems via Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning
  7. 2026Evolutionary Enhanced Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Cooperative Air Combat
  8. 2025From Static to Adaptive Defense: Federated Multi-Agent Deep Reinforcement Learning-Driven Moving Target Defense Against DoS Attacks in UAV Swarm Networks