The Secretary of State and Chairman of ENAIRE, José Antonio Santano, at the Seville Control Centre
• José Antonio Santano, Secretary of State for Transport and Sustainable Mobility and Chairman of ENAIRE, highlighted its contribution to Spain’s connectivity and territorial cohesion
• Over the years, ENAIRE has driven continuous technological modernisation, for example through the new iFOCUCS control positions
• 2025 marked a historic milestone for the Seville Control Centre, with more than 572,000 flights handled
ENAIRE, Spain’s national air navigation service provider, today held an event to mark the 25th anniversary of the Seville Air Traffic Control Centre, a key facility for managing air traffic in the south of mainland Spain and one of the pillars of the country’s air navigation system.
José Antonio Santano, Secretary of State for Transport and Sustainable Mobility and Chairman of ENAIRE, said that “this 25th anniversary is a cause for celebration because of its contribution to Spain’s connectivity and territorial cohesion, helping to drive progress towards an increasingly sustainable transport model serving the public as a whole”.
“ENAIRE has much to contribute as it stands at the forefront of the most important changes already under way in air mobility, including the integration of new entrants and the automation and digitalisation of air transport,” Santano added.
Enrique Maurer, ENAIRE’s Director General, said that the Seville Air Traffic Control Centre was once a pioneer of air navigation in Spain and that today, together with the rest of ENAIRE’s control centre network, it remains a benchmark for innovation thanks to projects that have placed it at the cutting edge of technology. “Twenty-five years on, the Seville Control Centre is still looking to the future and making possible, every day, the skies that drive this city,” he said.
Óscar Royano, Director of ENAIRE’s Southern Region, said he was proud to mark this anniversary with all the professionals at the Control Centre who, throughout this time, have shown their commitment to public service and whose dedication and talent have made it possible for millions of people to travel by air to their destinations each year.
From left to right: Enrique Maurer, Chief Executive of ENAIRE; José Antonio Santano, Secretary of State and Chairman of ENAIRE; and Óscar Royano, Director of ENAIRE’s Southern Region
25 years of history
The current Control Centre, officially opened on 18 June 2001, took over from the historic “El Judío” centre, located on the outskirts of Seville. This first control centre in Spain witnessed the birth of controlled air navigation in the country, with the first controlled flight taking place on 12 September 1952 on a route between Seville and Larache.
The original facilities, housed in a former farmhouse, became obsolete as air traffic grew sharply in the 1990s, leading to the construction of the current control centre. Since then, the Seville Control Centre, which is also home to the Southern Regional Directorate, has evolved into a highly advanced technological facility capable of handling increasingly complex operations.
Over the past 25 years, a series of milestones have shaped the history of the centre. The Seville Control Centre plays a key role in strategic programmes such as the Airbus A400M, whose final assembly line is based in Seville. The aircraft’s maiden flight, on 11 December 2009, was handled from this centre, which continues to support the flight testing of every aircraft produced.
The Seville Control Centre has also strengthened its environmental commitment. In 2022, a solar photovoltaic plant was commissioned to cover part of the centre’s electricity needs, helping to reduce emissions and improve the energy efficiency of this critical infrastructure.
Over the past 25 years, the airspace managed from Seville has been continually adapted to accommodate traffic growth. The deployment of Flexible Use of Airspace (FUA), in collaboration with the Spanish Air and Space Force, marked a major step forward in civil-military coordination for the effective management of airspace. This model enables the use of military areas to be adapted in real time, optimising routes, reducing delays and cutting fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions.
It has also demonstrated its operational capability during high-demand events, such as the 4th UN International Conference on Financing for Development, held in Seville in 2025, which brought together more than 10,000 participants, including delegations from 150 countries and numerous heads of state and government.
Technological innovation in the service of safety
Over the past 25 years, ENAIRE has continuously modernised the centre and introduced new technologies, including:
• the ongoing development of the air traffic control system (SACTA), most notably through the introduction of the new iFOCUCS control positions used by air traffic controllers. These improve the display of flight information and other supporting data provided by SACTA, while also enabling new decision-support functions for controllers within an advanced automated air traffic control environment;
• the deployment of new Mode S radars, improving the accuracy and reliability of the surveillance system used to track aircraft positions and movements—one of the cornerstones of air traffic control—and allowing additional information to be received from aircraft, thereby making a major contribution to the digitalisation of air traffic control;
• the transition from the analogue voice communications system used by controllers and pilots to a digital system based on Voice over IP technology, through ENAIRE’s COMETA system;
• the drive to make technical operations more efficient through the deployment of integrated monitoring systems for radio aids and communications transmitter and receiver centres;
• and improved efficiency, safety and sustainability in approaches to Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport through the MIDAS airspace redesign project.
These measures have improved the capacity, efficiency and quality of the air navigation services provided by the Centre, while also enhancing operational safety.
Record growth and international reach
The Seville Control Centre manages the airspace of the Southern Region, covering 179,000 square kilometres and encompassing Andalusia, the province of Badajoz, parts of Ciudad Real, Albacete and Murcia, the whole of the Bay of Cádiz and the western Mediterranean, as well as Ceuta and Melilla. This makes it a key part of air navigation in southern mainland Spain.
The region includes the airports of Badajoz, Almería, Córdoba, Jerez, Málaga-Costa del Sol, Federico García Lorca Granada-Jaén, Seville and Melilla, as well as the Ceuta heliport. ENAIRE provides communications, navigation and surveillance services at all of them, together with en-route and approach air traffic control and aerodrome control services.
Last year, the Seville Control Centre reached a historic milestone by handling more than 572,000 flights, up 35% on 2019, the previous record, representing the highest percentage growth in Europe since the pandemic. So far in 2026, that figure is already more than 42% above pre-pandemic levels.
This growth has been driven by rising traffic at Seville and Málaga airports, an increase in overflights to the Canary Islands, the development of the Europe–South America (EUR-SAM) corridor, and sustained growth in traffic with Morocco. This performance is underpinned by the 573 professionals working in the Southern Region, including air traffic controllers, maintenance and operations technicians, engineers, administrative staff and management personnel.
About ENAIRE
ENAIRE is the air navigation service provider in Spain.
As a company of the Ministry of Sustainable Transport and Mobility, it provides air traffic control services during the en route and approach phases of all flights to and from Spain and overflights. In addition, it manages communications, navigation and surveillance services from ENAIRE in the airspace and the entire AENA airport network in Spain and provides aerodrome air traffic control services in 21 airports, including the busiest.
ENAIRE is the fourth largest European air navigation service provider, and it is a member of international partnerships A6 Alliance, SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) Joint Undertaking, SESAR Deployment Manager, iTEC, CANSO (Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation) and collaborates closely with ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization).
ENAIRE has obtained the highest rating in the key performance indicator for air safety at European scale for seven consecutive years, the last six with the maximum possible score of 100%. It has also been awarded the EFQM 600 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.