An autonomy blueprint is essential to keep legacy platforms relevant in modern warfare

Russia’s drone and missile attacks on Ukraine – and Ukraine’s own asymmetric tactics – have accelerated the need for rapid adaptation on the modern battlefield. The days of relying solely on new platform development are gone. Like the urgent deployment of blast-resistant vehicles in Iraq and Afghanistan to counter IEDs, today’s mission demands faster paths to capability with new technologies. 

That path starts with a clear blueprint: enable autonomy on existing platforms, apply modern technologies like AI and edge computing, and build secure, interoperable architectures that evolve with the threat. Breaking Defense sat down with Matthew Milas, President of Honeywell Defense & Space, to break it down. 

Breaking Defense: Your strategic blueprint for integrated modernization focuses on maximizing existing platform capabilities, foundational interoperability, modern technology for elevated decision making, and cyber resilience by design. Break that down for us. 

Matthew Milas: Honeywell’s footprint in defense is enormous – we’re on nearly every major platform in the free world. That gives us a unique lens into what’s working, what’s aging and where we can inject new capability without having to build from scratch. That’s what’s driving a lot of our retrofit and modification programs.

A good example is the autonomous flight demo we did with the AW139 helicopter alongside Near Earth Autonomy. No pilots. No remote control. That aircraft flew autonomously using Honeywell’s existing avionics stack and Near Earth’s autonomy software. 

Now, imagine taking that same tech and scaling it across the installed fleet. Many of these aircraft already have Honeywell systems onboard. With targeted upgrades – some additional software and key hardware components – we can turn legacy platforms into autonomous assets without waiting on entirely new designs. 

Beyond platforms, we’re working closely with emerging tech companies like Anduril, Palantir, Shield AI, and others to build system architectures that are interoperable from day one. The goal is plug-and-play autonomy – systems that can connect and communicate across domains, vendors, and mission sets. 

How is Honeywell making that happen? 

It starts with interface simplicity. The more standard and straightforward the interfaces are, the faster we can connect different systems and share data. Because we work across so many platforms and OEMs, we’re designing our systems to be as interoperable as possible by default. 

It’s also about how we apply AI within Honeywell. Across the enterprise, we’re advancing AI-driven capabilities – whether it’s in warehouse automation, predictive maintenance, or operational technology – and feeding that innovation into our defense systems. 

Take counter-UAS, for instance. We developed a modular solution called SAMURAI – the Stationary and Mobile UAS Reveal and Intercept system. It’s layered defense by design: radar for detection, sensors for tracking, and a full menu of countermeasures – from long-range missiles to directed energy to drone-on-drone intercept. It’s built on Honeywell’s digital architecture, so it’s adaptable to the threat and the platform – whether on a ground vehicle, a ship, or guarding a base. 

Cybersecurity is equally critical. At Honeywell, we help secure critical infrastructure around the world. That discipline extends into our defense offerings. We’re embedding cyber into the product architecture itself – including intrusion detection tools and security management capabilities that can be retrofitted into legacy systems. 

Think of it like cyber-on-a-chip – solutions that help protect the subsystem and the mission without needing to rebuild the entire platform. 

Technology alone doesn’t drive mission success – interoperability, speed and collaboration do. Explain. 

That’s exactly right. Success isn’t just about advanced tech – it’s about how quickly and effectively you can field it. 

We’re working more closely than ever with OEMs across the defense industrial base, getting involved earlier in the design process. Since we provide systems across the full platform – from tip to tail – we can help shape scalable, affordable solutions from day one. 

Time is a critical factor. We can’t design systems that take five-plus years to field. With our blueprint, we aim to deliver faster. That’s especially true in autonomy. Unmanned systems don’t carry the same safety constraints as manned platforms, which opens the door for faster development cycles. If there’s no pilot on board, we can move more quickly and take a fresh look at what’s really required from a design and certification perspective. 

It’s about rethinking the balance between performance, risk, and fieldability – so we can move fast without compromising the mission. 

What’s your checklist for future-ready defense? 

First, take stock of the massive installed base. Fourth-gen fighters, support aircraft, rotary wing platforms, ground vehicles – there’s a lot of life left in these systems if we invest in making them relevant. By adding autonomy to these platforms, you can take a new approach to adding capability. 

We’re going to see more of this mindset: transforming legacy platforms into autonomous, high-impact tools. To make that possible, we must continue to invest in: AI and cloud computing for autonomous operations; sensor fusion and edge computing for contested environments; and Interoperability to allow joint and coalition forces to connect and act together. 

We also need to solve the capacity challenge. Demand for defense and commercial aerospace is skyrocketing across the globe. Suppliers are overloaded. The opportunity – and the risk – is huge. 

We believe the way forward is through dual-use suppliers – those who can serve both commercial and defense needs. If we grow that part of the base, we can expand production capacity, drive down costs, and meet demand faster. 

That’s a big part of the Honeywell strategy – use our scale, our tech, and our partnerships to deliver capabilities that are ready now, not years from now. 

To learn more, download Honeywell’s new eBook: The Future of Defense Across-All Domains