Seamless Skies Awards 2026 shortlist announced

The shortlist for the Seamless Skies Awards 2026 has been announced, recognising the organisations, initiatives and individuals driving innovation, collaboration and performance across global airspace management.

Delivered by CANSO in partnership with Global Airspace Radar and Unmanned Airspace/Urban Air Mobility News, the awards celebrate excellence across the ATM and UTM sectors, highlighting achievements in safety, efficiency, sustainability and the integration of new airspace users.

In each category, the shortlisted nominees are:

Building the lower airspace economy

• NASA Air Traffic Management and Safety Project – Safe, Increasingly Autonomous Surface Operations: NASA Digital Taxi Clearance and Autonomous Airport Surface Operations
• NAV CANADA, Unifly, Transport Canada – Open Skies, Safe Skies: Canada’s dual approach to lower airspace
• Wing Aviation – Wing Builds the Lower Airspace Economy With Scale
• Unifly, Skeydrone, Port of Antwerp-Bruges – From UTM to U-space Readiness: Operationalising Structured Lower Airspace at the Port of Antwerp-Bruges
• EUROCONTROL and consortium – U-ELCOME Project

Collaborative operations for sustainable skies

• EUROCONTROL MUAC, DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH (DFS), LVNL and partners – Cross-border civil–military airspace redesign over the Netherlands and north-west Germany
• Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department – Collaborative Air Traffic Management for resilient and sustainable operations under adverse weather
• DLR, ENAIRE and partners – IFAV3 – Increased Flexibility of ATCO Validations
• ANRA Technologies – Shared Airspace: UK-wide integration of multi-operator drone operations
• Airways New Zealand and Airservices Australia – Cross-border partnership transforming regional aviation
• skeyes, Brussels Airport Company and partners – Collaborative ISGS operations for quieter and more sustainable approaches

Innovation to enable safer, more efficient operations

• ResilienX, Inc. – OptiX and SAFE-T: A resilient digital infrastructure layer for integrated airspace operations
• AMPLE3 SESAR 3 project consortium – Transforming European aviation through digital innovation
• ROMATSA RA & Indra – First ANSP FF-ICE/R1 deployment
• DLR, NLR and partners – DYN-MARS – FMS enhancements for more sustainable and quieter flights
• ASTRA Consortium – AI-based solution for tactical air traffic complexity prediction and resolution
• Avinor Air Navigation Services – Multiple airport operations from one digital tower centre

Remarkable people & workforce

• NASA Airspace Operations & Safety Programme – A multi-centre team shaping the future of flight
• Greenland Airports – Resilience and teamwork behind Greenland’s digital airspace
• FAA – Excellence in All Ways
• Austro Control – #542morrow – Innovation at Austro Control
• ATM Azeraeronavigation – Workforce excellence in airspace management

Safety, security & resilience

• Frequentis AG – German Armed Forces low-altitude air picture and military UTM capability
• Polish Air Navigation Services Agency – Skyward Synergy civil–military collaboration
• EUROCONTROL and EASA – Joint Action Plan on GNSS RFI
• ENAIRE – AI-driven system to enhance safety incident investigation

Seamless Skies for All

• NASA Air Traffic Management eXploration Project – High-altitude traffic management collaborative evaluation
• DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH – ATCO operational model for drone integration in CTRs
• EUROCONTROL – Managing Europe’s busiest summer through network collaboration
• ENAIRE – Integrated digital ecosystem for airspace coordination
• Straten Consulting Services Limited – Airline flight optimisation system

Simon Hocquard, President and CEO, CANSO, said: “The Seamless Skies Awards highlight the innovation, collaboration and commitment that define our industry at its best. This year’s shortlist showcases the breadth of work taking place across the global ATM community to enhance safety, improve performance and prepare our skies for the future. These finalists are not only delivering results today, but helping to shape a more connected, resilient and sustainable aviation system for tomorrow.”

Winners will be announced at the Seamless Skies’ Awards Ceremony at Airspace World 2026 in Lisbon, where the global ATM community will come together to celebrate those leading innovation across the skies.