Europe’s most promising young talent in air traffic management (ATM) research were honoured at the SESAR Young Scientist Award ceremony, held during the closing plenary of the SESAR Innovation Days conference on 15 November in Rome.
Awarded annually, the SESAR Young Scientist Award aims to recognise early-career researchers who have excelled in ATM and aviation-related fields. The award not only celebrates scientific excellence but also supports young researchers by offering them further professional development opportunities. Another goal of the award is to highlight the potential of young talent to bring fresh perspectives and solutions to the challenges facing ATM and aviation.
The top honour in the PhD category went to Yutong Chen from Cranfield University for his groundbreaking research on strategic and tactical conflict management, addressing both crewed and uncrewed operations. The jury praised his innovative use of reinforcement learning (RL) to tackle complex conflict resolution (CR) challenges in air traffic. “The research significantly advances the state of the art, offering innovative techniques that align closely with SESAR’s mission to modernise and enhance European air traffic management systems,” noted the jury.
Second place in the PhD category was awarded to Andreas Dilan Jean Guitart from École Nationale de l'Aviation Civile. His thesis on the development of algorithms for generating flight trajectories during critical conditions received high marks for its novel use of robotics-based path planning methods in trajectory management, adding a fresh dimension to established research in the field.
Raquel Delgado-Aguilera Jurado from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) took third place for her thesis on predicting separation minima infringements, a vital area in air traffic management. The jury commended her work for its well-structured analysis and comprehensive research methodology.
In the student category, the top prize went to Samuel Christian Heilein from the German Aerospace Center (DLR), for his research addressing radar altimetry characterisation and the augmentation of ground-corrected barometric vertical navigation in uncrewed traffic management. The jury lauded his work as an impactful solution to a real-world problem, significantly contributing to the evolving framework for handling new aviation complexities.
Second prize in the student category was awarded to Manuel Lombardi from La Sapienza University of Rome, who investigated an algorithm for managing Call Sign Similarity (CSS) to improve air traffic safety. His thesis received positive comments for its relevance and innovative approach.
Third place went to Julia Schön from Friedrich Schiller University Jena and DLR for her work on creating a virtual reality tower workstation for small uncontrolled aerodromes, studying its ergonomics and usability. The jury noted the thesis’s strong foundation in relevant literature and the valuable practical insights from involving air traffic controllers.
Andreas Boschen, Executive Director of SESAR JU, congratulated the winners and all participants, saying: “Congratulations to all our winners, Chen Yutong and Samuel Christian Heilein, as well as to all applicants and shortlisted candidates. Young talent breathes new life into our industry—bringing bold ideas, creativity, and an unyielding drive to push the boundaries of what’s possible. These are the essential ingredients in our journey to build the Digital European Sky.”