2025 Agenda

The European Sky Multilink ATN (ESMA) is a Digital Sky Demonstrator in the frame of Connecting Europe Facilities (CEF-T-2022). This project aims at improving the European ATM datalink capabilities on its path to the future multilink. ESMA is co-founded by the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) and supported by SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking (S3JU).
The aim of this project, is to perform two different demonstrations regarding Data Link services and communications between air and ground users:

• Demo #1 – Dual Link ATN/OSI: the operation of the Dual Link communications infrastructure, with a focus on datalink using satellite communication (SATCOM Datalink) alongside VHF Data Link (VDL) Mode 2, gathering data from commercial flights all over Europe. This part of the project will be aimed at demonstrating the link transition between the two technologies in a seamless way for pilots and ATCOs. Partners involved in this demonstration will allow ESMA to reunite representatives of all the ATM spectrum. Transavia aircrafts equipped with SATCOM and VDLm2 capabilities – thanks to its Airbus avionics – will perform its regular flights inside Transavia’s network. The Communication Service Providers (CSPs) will be monitoring the link performance used for the provision of ATN/B1 and ATS/B2 services and applications, either using VDLm2 (provided by SITA) or SATCOM (Iris service provided by ESSP). Several ANSPs such as ENAIRE, NATS, DSNA and Skyguide are participating in this demonstration providing their operational point of view, while Eurocontrol addresses the overall end-to-end performance monitoring thanks to the Network Manager.

• Demo #2 – Multilink ATN/IPS: to perform a multilink demonstration including the transition OSI/IPS. Compatibility of IPS-equipped aircraft with OSI-based ground systems together with the goal of developing further the FCI Ground Backbone (as developed in SESAR’s Sol77) running in a near-operational environment to measure its performance. During this demonstration, the use of a ground OSI/IPS gateway will allow the interoperability between IPS enabled aircrafts and ANPS with ATN/OSI end-systems. This demonstration will be performed in collaboration with Boeing’s ECO demonstrator project. Within this demonstrator, FAA VDL flights are going to be performed in the US, potential to leverage results withs ESMA. Several industries such as SITA, Airtel or Frequentis will be involved in this demonstration providing the different components of the ground infrastructure deployed in SITA’s backbone. Also, ANSP operated end-systems will be supporting this demonstration.

The project started in January 2024, and its data gathering activities started since July the same year, with the addition of EasyJet performance monitoring data thanks to the collaboration with Iris project. During the project and until its end in December 2026, the project will make all possible efforts to involve other airspace users into the demonstrations, thus enabling the acquisition of a wider SATCOM/VDLm2 data sample and its expected analysis.
As output of this demonstrations several performance monitoring reports will be produced, as well as
The project will disseminate its results by performing periodic monitoring report and celebrating several workshops and dissemination events during the project time frame. The final objective to ESMA is to demonstrate by the end of the project a service fit to the future Air Traffic Management, supporting pioneer ANSPs and airlines joining the new services, and adapting the new infrastructure to accommodate both protocols.