ENAIRE launches the fourth edition of its Technological Challenges Competition to boost innovation in air traffic management

ENAIRE, Spain’s national air navigation manager, through CRIDA—its Research, Development and Innovation (R&D&I) subsidiary in partnership with Ineco and the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM)—is launching the fourth edition of the Technological Challenges Competition, a strategic initiative aimed at finding pioneering technological solutions in the field of air traffic management (ATM).

The two winning projects will sign an 18-month research agreement with CRIDA worth 60,000 euros

“This competition is designed to promote collaboration with knowledge centres and innovation system stakeholders, facilitating the development of advanced technologies that can be applied in real-world environments,” said ENAIRE’s CEO, Enrique Maurer.

Call for applications open

Interested groups will be able to submit their proposals until 30 June 2025 through the official website of the ENAIRE Open Innovation programme, which contains all the information on the challenges, the rules of the competition and the registration process.

Challenges of the competition

This year's topics address five key challenges to the transformation of the air navigation and air traffic management sector.

- Towards explainable and safe Artificial Intelligence (AI) in air traffic management through certification.

- Operational resilience in ATM: strategies for recovering from failures in automated systems.

- Oversight in ATM: transparency, supervision and control of AI in real time.

- Assisted automation in ATM: digital assistant for air traffic controllers.

- Multi-objective optimisation: dynamic balance between safety, capacity and sustainability in ATM.

Prizes and benefits for the selected teams

The two winning teams will sign an 18-month research agreement with CRIDA worth 60,000 euros, during which they will develop their proposed projects to demonstrate their technical and economic suitability and feasibility.

Presentation of results: Demo Day

The selected proposals will be presented at Demo Day, to be held in November 2026 in Madrid, where the teams will reveal the progress made before an audience made up of innovation managers, ENAIRE executives and representatives of the technological and institutional ecosystem.

For any questions or enquiries, the contact email is: retostecnológicos@enaireopeninnovation.com

About CRIDA

CRIDA is a non-profit economic interest group established by ENAIRE, the Technical University of Madrid (UPM) and Ingeniería y Economía del Transporte, S.A. (INECO) to improve the efficiency of the air traffic management system in Spain through R&D projects.

In collaboration with ENAIRE, CRIDA identifies problems, proposes innovative solutions and facilitates their implementation, contributing to the advancement of air navigation on a global scale.

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 received the highest score in Europe on the aviation safety key performance indicator for four years in a row. It has also been awarded the EFQM 600 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.