PACAS · Project

Software Platform That Predicts How Changes in Air Traffic Systems Affect Safety and Cost

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Imagine you're renovating a house where every wall is load-bearing — move one thing and everything else shifts. That's what managing air traffic control systems is like. PACAS built a software platform that lets different teams — engineers, safety experts, operations people — model their part of the system and instantly see how a proposed change ripples across everything else. They even turned the collaboration process into something game-like so people actually want to participate, rather than drowning in spreadsheets and meetings.

By the numbers

EUR 998,355

EU funding for platform development

consortium partners across 3 countries

total project deliverables produced

demo deliverables including platform releases and reasoning proof-of-concept

major platform releases delivered

The business problem

What needed solving

Managing changes in air traffic management systems is extremely risky — a single modification to software, procedures, or organization can cascade unpredictably across safety, security, performance, and cost. Today, assessing these impacts relies on manual coordination between siloed expert teams, which is slow, error-prone, and expensive. ATM organizations need a way to model and predict the full ripple effects of any proposed change before committing to it.

The solution

What was built

PACAS delivered a gamified collaboration platform with two major releases, domain-specific modeling languages for capturing different ATM expert perspectives, and a reasoning proof-of-concept featuring automated model verification and multi-objective optimization techniques. In total, the project produced 19 deliverables including 4 demo outputs.

Audience

Who needs this

Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) managing infrastructure modernizationATM system integrators and vendors coordinating multi-layer upgradesAviation safety regulators overseeing system change complianceAirport operators planning technology transitionsDefense and military air traffic control modernization teams

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Air Navigation Services

enterprise

Target: Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) like ENAV, LVNL, or Avinor

If you are an ANSP dealing with the headache of upgrading ATM infrastructure without disrupting live operations — this project developed a multi-perspective modeling platform that lets your safety, operations, and engineering teams simultaneously assess how a proposed change impacts cost, security, and performance before you commit to it. The platform was validated with domain experts across 3 countries and delivered 19 project outputs including a working proof-of-concept.

ATM Systems Integration

enterprise

Target: ATM technology vendors and system integrators like Thales, Indra, or Leonardo

If you are an ATM system integrator struggling to coordinate change requests across multiple client organizations and technical layers — this project built domain-specific modeling languages and automated impact propagation techniques that trace how a change in one subsystem affects others. With 4 demo deliverables including a reasoning proof-of-concept with multi-objective optimization, this can reduce the time your teams spend on manual impact assessment.

Aviation Regulation & Safety

enterprise

Target: Aviation safety agencies and regulatory bodies managing compliance during system transitions

If you are a safety oversight body needing to verify that ATM system upgrades maintain safety and security standards — this project created automated model verification techniques that check whether proposed architectural changes violate safety constraints. The platform supports multiple expert perspectives simultaneously, validated by an external advisory board of ATM domain experts focused on safety, security, and economic aspects.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to adopt this platform?

The project received EUR 998,355 in EU funding over 2 years to develop the platform. As a research proof-of-concept from a university-led consortium, there is no commercial pricing. Licensing or development costs would need to be negotiated directly with the consortium, likely requiring further engineering investment to reach production readiness.

Can this work at the scale of a real national ATM system?

The platform was validated with ATM domain experts via an external advisory board, but the deliverables describe a proof-of-concept rather than a production-scale deployment. The reasoning engine includes multi-objective optimization and automated verification, which are designed for complex systems. However, scaling to a full national ATM infrastructure would require additional engineering and integration work.

Who owns the intellectual property and can we license it?

The consortium is led by Università degli Studi di Trento (Italy) with 5 partners across Italy, the Netherlands, and Norway. IP ownership follows standard EU project rules, typically shared among consortium members. Licensing terms would need to be discussed with the coordinator.

Does this comply with SESAR and Single European Sky regulations?

Yes — the project was funded under the SESAR program (SESAR-RIA funding scheme, topic Sesar-10-2015), which is the EU's initiative for modernizing European air traffic management. The validation specifically addressed safety, security, economic, and organizational aspects aligned with SESAR objectives.

How long would implementation take?

The proof-of-concept was developed over a 2-year project period (March 2016 to February 2018). The platform went through two major releases during this time. Moving from proof-of-concept to operational deployment in a live ATM environment would likely require additional development, certification, and integration phases.

Can this integrate with existing ATM systems and tools?

The platform uses domain-specific modeling languages designed to capture multiple ATM perspectives (operational, organizational, technical). Based on available project data, the proof-of-concept was built to demonstrate the concept rather than plug into specific commercial ATM systems. Integration with existing tools like SWIM or flight data processing systems would require custom adapter development.

Is there ongoing support or development?

The project ended in February 2018 and is now closed. The consortium included 2 universities and 2 research organizations, suggesting the knowledge base remains in academic institutions. Continued development would depend on follow-up projects or commercial interest from ATM industry partners.

Consortium

Who built it

The PACAS consortium is a compact, research-heavy team of 5 partners from 3 countries (Italy, Netherlands, Norway), led by the University of Trento. With 2 universities and 2 research organizations making up 80% of the consortium and only 1 industry partner (20% industry ratio, 1 SME), this is clearly an academic-driven effort. The low industry participation means the technology was designed with scientific rigor but may lack the commercial polish and operational validation that ATM buyers expect. Any company interested in this technology should plan for significant productization effort beyond the proof-of-concept stage.

UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI TRENTOCoordinator · IT
STIFTELSEN SINTEFparticipant · NO
DEEP BLUE SRLparticipant · IT
SINTEF ASparticipant · NO
UNIVERSITEIT UTRECHTparticipant · NL

How to reach the team

The coordinator is Università degli Studi di Trento (Italy). Use SciTransfer's coordinator lookup service to obtain the project lead's direct contact details.

Order a report on this consortium See UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI TRENTO profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how PACAS change management technology could work in your ATM operations? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the research team and help assess fit for your specific needs.

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