Modern threats demand modern solutions, and a new system that provides an airborne defense layer to protect critical infrastructure from drone threats.
We are thrilled to see an incredible 2+2=5 collaboration that advances modern defense systems with Odys Aviation partnering with Honeywell Aerospace Technologies to bring a new airborne counter-UAS solution to the defense tech market. This collaboration builds on more than a year of joint development and systems integration work to adapt Honeywell’s SAMURAI Autonomous Airborne platform into Odys Aviation’s long-range hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft, Laila.
The result? A new defensive counter-UAS layer that:
• Bridges the gap between ground sensors and missile defense systems
• Reduces reliance on costly kinetic defenses
• Extends protection from the doorstep to the horizon
Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) announced a collaboration with Odys Aviation, a dual-use aerospace company building hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, to deliver a persistent airborne defense solution designed to protect critical infrastructure and strategic assets from rapidly evolving drone threats.
The collaboration on this counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) builds on more than a year of joint development and systems integration work to adapt Honeywell Aerospace’s Stationary and Mobile UAS Reveal and Intercept (SAMURAI) Autonomous Airborne platform for deployment on Odys’ long-range Laila UAV. The effort supports the broader United States national strategy to further strengthen domestic leadership in advanced aviation and accelerate the deployment of American-built drone technologies across defense and critical infrastructure protection missions.
Together, the Laila-SAMURAI system introduces a new defensive layer between ground-based sensors and high-end missile defense systems, reducing reliance on costly kinetic defenses while extending protection coverage across vast and remote areas. This capability is particularly relevant for distributed energy infrastructure, including refineries, pipelines, and offshore production platforms.
“SAMURAI delivers critical counter-UAS capabilities with proven reliability, scalability, and seamless integration into existing defense architectures. By leveraging Honeywell’s long history in avionics, sensors and defense systems, we are enabling C-UAS capabilities that protect farther, respond faster, and operate with minimal downtime.” — Matt Milas, president, Defense and Space, Honeywell Aerospace.
“Drone threats have fundamentally changed the economics and operational requirements of air defense,” said James Dorris, CEO of Odys Aviation. “Critical infrastructure and forward-operating locations require persistent protection across large areas and the ability to engage threats at the horizon long before they’re at the doorstep. By combining Honeywell’s SAMURAI system with the endurance, runway independence, and onboard power capability of Laila, we’re introducing a new airborne defense layer designed for today and into the future.”
Laila will serve as the first airborne application of the Honeywell SAMURAI system, and its hybrid propulsion system – compatible with Jet A, Jet A-1, and JP-8 fuels – produces enough power to stay in flight for up to eight hours across a 450-mile range. Laila eliminates the need for dedicated charging infrastructure, enabling rapid deployment in remote, expeditionary, and offshore environments.
Built using model-based systems engineering, SAMURAI provides a turnkey, modular solution that incorporates diverse customer-selected sensors and effectors. The system is compliant with Modular Open Systems Approach standards, supporting interoperability, lifecycle visibility, and long-term sustainment.
About Honeywell Aerospace
Products and services from Honeywell Aerospace Technologies are found on virtually every commercial, defense and space aircraft, and in many terrestrial systems. The Aerospace Technologies business unit builds aircraft engines, cockpit and cabin electronics, wireless connectivity, thermal, power and actuation systems, and more. Its hardware and software solutions create more fuel-efficient aircraft, more direct and on-time flights and safer skies and airports. For more information, visit aerospace.honeywell.com or follow Honeywell Aerospace Technologies on LinkedIn.
Honeywell is an integrated operating company serving a broad range of industries and geographies around the world, with a portfolio that is underpinned by our Honeywell Accelerator operating system and Honeywell Forge platform. As a trusted partner, we help organizations solve the world’s toughest, most complex challenges, providing actionable solutions and innovations for aerospace, building automation, industrial automation, process automation, and process technology, that help make the world smarter and safer as well as more secure and sustainable. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom.
About Odys Aviation
Odys Aviation designs, develops and manufactures long-range, technologically advanced dual-use VTOL aircraft that solve global challenges across defense, logistics, and passenger travel. The company is pioneering the next generation of VTOL aircraft which use hybrid-electric propulsion systems to deliver the optimal balance between range and payload.
Based in Long Beach, CA, Odys Aviation was launched in 2021 and is led by seasoned engineers and strategists from SpaceX, Airbus, Tesla and the U.S. Department of Defense. The company has $11B+ in signed LOIs to date. Visit www.odysaviation.com for more information.