Revista Sextante

Human–Machine Collaboration in Military Operations: Challenges for Future Defense Systems

Henrik Solvang-Okafor

Department of Human Factors and Defense Systems Engineering Nordic Institute for Strategic Technology, Oslo, Norway

Keywords: human–machine teaming, military autonomy, trust in automation, meaningful human control, defense systems

Abstract

The integration of autonomous and semi-autonomous technologies into armed forces is transforming how military operations are planned, commanded, and executed. Human–machine collaboration, often described as human–machine teaming, promises faster decisions, wider situational coverage, and reduced exposure of personnel to danger, yet it also introduces demanding technical, cognitive, ethical, and organizational challenges. This article examines those challenges through an integrative conceptual review of the human factors, automation, and defense studies literature. It analyzes the conceptual foundations of teaming, the allocation of autonomy within command structures, trust calibration, situation awareness and workload, interface design, ethical and legal accountability, cyber resilience, training and doctrine, and interoperability. A conceptual graph compares the operational criticality of each challenge with the estimated maturity of current solutions, revealing that accountability, trust, and cyber resilience are the areas where need most exceeds readiness. The article argues that future defense systems should be designed around meaningful human control, transparent machine reasoning, adaptive training, and shared international standards, so that human judgment and machine speed reinforce rather than undermine one another.