When Honorius died in 423 A.D, Aetius attached himself to the usurper Johannes, who sent him to the Huns to ask for military assistance. He returned to Italy in 425 A.D. with an army only to find Johannes dead and the western empire in control of Valentinian III and his mother Galla Placidia. After some fighting, Aetius was able to forge a compromise with Galla which required that he send the Huns home in exchange for an appointment as general under the new emperor.
The list of Aetius military successes is a long one. Between 427 and 430 A.D. he defeated the Visigoths and Franks in Gaul. Between 433 and 450 A.D. he fought the Burgundians, the Suebi, and the Visigoths, treating with the latter in 439 A.D. He fought the Burgundians again in 443 A.D. and the Franks again in 448 A.D. Wherever he went, Aetius carried a Hunnic cavalry with him.