From cockpit to control tower: SESAR JU showcases digital European sky at TRA 2026 to EU Policy Makers

On the occasion of the Transport Research Arena (TRA) 2026, Magda Kopczyńska, Director-General for Mobility and Transport, and Eric von Breska, Director for Investment, Innovative & Sustainable Transport, DG MOVE took part in SESAR familiarisation visits - highlighting the central role of air traffic management in Europe's transport innovation agenda.

Designed as immersive, gate-to-gate experiences, the visits brought participants behind the scenes at Brussels Airport, Brussels Airlines and HungaroControl, - all members of the SESAR JU - showcasing how SESAR innovation is delivering operational benefits across Europe's aviation ecosystem. They also underscored the strength of collaboration across the SESAR community - bringing together airports, airlines, air navigation service providers and industry to build a more connected and future-ready European sky.

As Magda Kopczyńska noted, "the visit provided valuable insight into the technical realities of air traffic management, underscoring that in today's increasingly complex global environment, strong collaboration across Europe's aviation community is essential to deliver a more efficient, resilient and sustainable system. Smarter air traffic management improves the passenger experience across Europe, reduces fuel consumption through optimised trajectories, and helps maintain the EU's global leadership in ATM technologies."

A gate-to-gate experience of Europe's digital sky

From the airport apron to cruise altitude, SESAR is delivering solutions for a fully integrated, digital ecosystem. Magda Kopczyńska and Eric von Breska saw this first-hand through live demonstrations and technical briefings, experiencing a clear gate-to-gate journey of the Digital European Sky - from airport operations to airspace and network management.

In Brussels, Eric von Breska visited Brussels Airport's airport operations centre (APOC), where collaborative decision-making enables real-time integration between the airport, operators and service providers.

Both participants also explored the cockpit perspective through in-flight briefings with Brussels Airlines, gaining first-hand insight into how SESAR Solutions support more predictable, data-driven and efficient flight operations.

In Budapest, they went behind the scenes at HungaroControl, including a visit to the remote digital tower, and received demonstrations on how SESAR Solutions - such as trajectory-based operations, dynamic airspace and digital towers-are already being validated in real operations and are supporting a more flexible and scalable European airspace.

By connecting policy discussions at TRA with operational realities on the ground, the visits underscored the value of SESAR as a delivery engine for Europe's Digital European Sky.

A special thanks to our partners Brussels Airport, Brussels Airlines and HungaroControl for bringing these visits to life and demonstrating SESAR innovation in action. Together, this is partnership in action!