Real-time simulations (RTS) are a powerful tool used to test and validate new technologies, processes, and procedures in real-time, as they would occur in real-world operations. In the context of air traffic management (ATM), RTS enables researchers, engineers, regulators and training specialists to simulate actual air traffic scenarios, helping them to evaluate new systems or procedures in an operationally representative setting.

With the rise of new airspace users and emerging ATM concepts, such as U-space and advanced air mobility (AAM), associated verification and validation (V&V) processes have grown more complex. This evolution has increased the demands on the infrastructure needed to validate these novel concepts under operational conditions.

To meet these challenges, enhancing the interoperability between specialised simulators is crucial for strengthening ATM V&V infrastructures.

The VISORS project, funded by SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking as part of the Horizon Europe programme, aims to explore and demonstrate the potential of such enhanced interoperability. The project, running from September 2024 to February 2027, will design and conduct an experimental demonstration that connects various simulation facilities based in different countries through a prototype platform, leading to a distributed/federated interoperable solution. Data collected during this demonstration will be analysed to assess its viability.

To guide and inform the development of the experimental demonstrator, the project will assess the potential for the VISORS capability in three use cases, which themselves address critical areas of future ATM operations, namely UAM/ATM integration; the advent of unconventional airspace users; and a ‘pure’ ATM use case.

In support of these objectives, the VISORS project will also evaluate the technical standards for interoperability across ATM validation platforms, perform an economic analysis of the validation processes using the interoperability concept, and assess the security aspects related to data exchange between these platforms. Additionally, the project will investigate the effects of distributed actors on human performance data collection.

The consortium, guided by DLR – The German Aerospace Center, is composed of Acubed, AIRBUS, CIRA – The Italian Aerospace Research Centre, Deep Blue, DFS – The German air navigation service provider, EUROCONTROL, NLR – Netherlands Aerospace Centre, and TXT Group.

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More about the project: https://www.sesarju.eu/projects/VISORS