Air Traffic Management systems and controller toolsprimary
5 projects
Central to PJ10 PROSA (both Wave 1 and W2), PJ18 4DTM, PJ32 Virtual Centre, and PJ09 DNMS — all focused on controller decision support and ATM operations.
Organization
IDS AIRNAV SRL
Italian ATM technology firm specialising in controller tools, drone airspace integration, remote towers, and GNSS-based approaches within the SESAR programme.
Engineering firmtransportITNo active H2020 projects
H2020 projects
12
As coordinator
1
Total EC funding
€51K
Unique partners
106
What they do
Their core work
IDS AirNav is an Italian air traffic management (ATM) technology company that develops systems and solutions for air navigation services. They specialize in controller support tools, separation management, remote tower systems, and the integration of drones (RPAS) into controlled airspace. Their work spans the full ATM chain — from runway and surface operations to en-route airspace management and network-level optimization. They are deeply embedded in the SESAR programme, Europe's flagship initiative to modernize air traffic control infrastructure.
Core expertise
What they specialise in
2 projects
Coordinated DREAMS (DRone European AIM Study) and contributed to PJ13-W2 ERICA on RPAS insertion including detect-and-avoid and IFR operations.
GNSS-based precision approach and runway operationssecondary
2 projects
VLD1-W2 DREAMS demonstrated GBAS CAT II/III satellite approaches, and PJ02-W2 AART addressed runway throughput and surface management.
Remote and virtual tower technologysecondary
2 projects
PJ05-W2 DTT focused on remote tower centres and HMI for aerodrome controllers; PJ32-W3 VC explored virtual centre concepts and airspace delegation.
Airport surface managementsecondary
2 projects
PJ03a SUMO addressed integrated surface management, complemented by surface-related elements in PJ02-W2 AART.
ATM digitalisation and virtualisationemerging
2 projects
PJ32-W3 VC (Virtual Centre) and PJ09-W2 DNMS (Digital Network Management) represent a clear move toward digitalised, de-fragmented ATM architectures.
Evolution & trajectory
How they've shifted over time
Early focus
ATM systems and drone integration
Recent focus
Digital towers and virtualised ATM
In their early H2020 period (2016–2019), IDS AirNav focused on foundational ATM topics: trajectory management, common services, controller tools, and surface management, alongside their first foray into drone airspace integration via the DREAMS study they coordinated. From 2019 onward, their work shifted decisively toward digitalisation and advanced ATM concepts — remote towers, virtual centres, airspace delegation, speech recognition for controllers, and satellite-based precision approaches (GBAS CAT II/III). This progression shows a company moving from traditional ATM system components toward the digital, automated, and unmanned future of air traffic control.
IDS AirNav is moving toward virtualised, digitally connected ATM architectures and unmanned aviation integration — positioning them for Europe's next-generation airspace modernisation wave.
Collaboration profile
How they like to work
Role: third_party_expertReach: European27 countries collaborated
IDS AirNav operates almost exclusively as a third-party contributor (11 of 12 projects), providing specialist ATM expertise to large SESAR consortia led by major air navigation service providers and research centres. With 106 unique partners across 27 countries, they are broadly networked rather than locked into a small circle. This profile suggests a reliable technical contributor that larger consortia bring in for specific ATM domain expertise — easy to integrate but unlikely to take the lead on project management.
With 106 unique consortium partners spanning 27 countries, IDS AirNav has one of the broader networks in the SESAR ecosystem. Their connections cover the major European ANSPs, ATM technology providers, and aviation research organisations — a pan-European footprint shaped by the large, multi-partner structure typical of SESAR projects.
Why partner with them
What sets them apart
IDS AirNav combines deep ATM domain expertise with the agility of a private company, unlike the large national ANSPs or heavyweight aerospace corporates that dominate SESAR. Their breadth — spanning controller tools, drone integration, remote towers, GNSS approaches, and virtual centres — makes them unusually versatile within the ATM technology space. For consortium builders, they offer proven SESAR-programme experience with minimal overhead, filling specialist roles that research institutes or ANSPs may not cover as flexibly.
Notable projects
Highlights from their portfolio
- DREAMSTheir only coordinated project — a focused study on drone airspace integration that led to a follow-on SESAR validation demonstration (VLD1-W2 DREAMS).
- VLD1-W2 DREAMSDemonstrated real-world GBAS CAT II/III satellite-based approaches for runway throughput and noise reduction — a tangible validation activity, not just research.
- PJ32-W3 VCTheir most recent project (2021–2023) on virtual ATM centres represents the frontier of European airspace digitalisation and de-fragmentation.
Cross-sector capabilities
Space (GNSS/satellite navigation for aviation)Security (detect-and-avoid for unmanned aircraft, airspace safety)Digital (HMI design, speech recognition, virtualisation architectures)
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