Honeywell and Merlin, a developer of autonomous flight technology for fixed-wing aircraft, have announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to bring autonomy to a wide range of aircraft, including military fleets.
The collaboration will integrate Merlin Pilot, a non-human pilot system, with Honeywell Anthem’s advanced avionics suite to reduce pilot workloads and enhance operational efficiency for special missions. Honeywell Anthem offers an intuitive user interface and advanced flight management system, complementing Merlin Pilot’s automation capabilities to provide safe and robust automated flight tasks across various aircraft types.
Initially, the partnership will focus on retrofitting fixed-wing military aircraft with Merlin’s automation system, allowing for reduced crew operations and, eventually, un-crewed flights. Unlike fully autonomous systems designed for new aircraft, this solution upgrades existing military aircraft by reducing the need for multiple pilots while maintaining rigorous safety standards.
“This collaboration will benefit the military significantly, as this autonomy solution helps alleviate the pilot shortage by reducing the number of pilots required for certain aircraft operations,” said Bob Buddecke, President of Electronic Solutions at Honeywell Aerospace Technologies. “By enabling single-pilot operations and automating key tasks, this partnership provides a scalable and safe solution to ease pilot workload and optimise fleet operations for both the military and commercial aviation sectors.”
This MOU supports Honeywell’s alignment of its portfolio to the compelling megatrends of automation and the future of aviation. It also enables Merlin to continue enhancing pilot efficiency and flight safety for both commercial and military aviation, building on the US$105 million production contract it recently won from United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and the partnership it recently announced with Air Mobility Command (AMC) and Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) to integrate the Merlin Pilot on the C-130J and KC-135 aircraft, respectively.
Merlin is a venture backed aerospace start-up building a non-human pilot to enable both reduced crew and un-crewed flight.
