Ineco helped develop Dynamic Capacity Management (DCM) technology to support the safe and efficient integration of drones into airspace.
The European SPATIO project has successfully concluded after three years of research and development aimed at supporting the safe integration of drones into Europe’s airspace. Throughout the initiative, Ineco played a significant technological role, particularly in the fields of dynamic airspace capacity management and the tactical resolution of conflicts between drones.
Led by ENAIRE through CRIDA and developed under the SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking programme, SPATIO received €7 million in European funding and brought together more than 20 partners. The project focused on developing advanced U-space services capable of adapting airspace capacity to real-time demand while enabling increasingly automated drone operations, from flight planning through to live monitoring.
As part of this work, Ineco contributed to the development of Dynamic Capacity Management (DCM) technology, designed to optimise the use of airspace and increase the number of simultaneous drone operations without compromising safety. The company also took part in demonstrating a complementary solution for the detection and tactical resolution of conflicts between drones in flight. Ineco was responsible for integrating system-generated alerts directly into the remote pilot’s command interface and operated one of the drones used during the trials.
The consortium’s technologies were validated through a series of demonstration flights across four operational scenarios in Ireland, Romania and Spain, including dedicated test campaigns in Galicia and the Madrid region. These exercises confirmed the effectiveness of the solutions under real operating conditions and helped advance preparations for the expected growth of unmanned air traffic. SPATIO also explored other key challenges associated with the future deployment of U-space services, including the management of noise impacts and the adaptation of traffic density to the specific risk profile of different areas.
The project concluded with a closing event hosted at ENAIRE headquarters, bringing together more than 60 representatives from 30 public and private organisations to review the project’s achievements and discuss the next steps towards market deployment. David Saiz, CNS-ATM Systems Specialist at Ineco, presented the results delivered by the Dynamic Capacity Management solution.
With the completion of SPATIO, Ineco adds another milestone to its growing track record in advanced air mobility and U-space initiatives, contributing to the development of the technologies that will enable the safe and efficient integration of crewed and uncrewed operations within Europe’s future airspace ecosystem.
