Earlier this month, DataBeacon was invited to participate in the IFISA Workshop 2024 [link to: https://ifisa.info/stayinformed2024/], an event that brings together Flight Information Service Officers (FISOs) from around the world to exchange experiences and discuss the future of air traffic services.
As part of our presentation, we shared the latest developments from SafeTeam, our Horizon Europe-funded project focused on safe human-machine teaming in aviation. In particular, we showcased one of SafeTeam’s main use cases: a digital assistant for en-route air traffic control, designed to support controllers with context-aware insights and anticipatory workload information.
Presenting this work in front of FISOs was especially valuable. While much of the research in automation tends to focus on pilots and ATCOs, the role of FISOs is equally critical, especially in low-traffic or non-radar environments where situational awareness and decision-making rely heavily on human expertise.
By engaging with the IFISA community, we not only raised awareness about the ongoing research in human-centric AI and automation, but also started important conversations around future applications, operational needs, and human-system collaboration. Their feedback will help us better understand the real-world challenges and opportunities for deploying higher levels of automation across different service environments.
This interaction is a key step in preparing our exploitation strategy: connecting early with end users to ensure that the solutions we develop are trusted, usable, and aligned with operational needs—not just technically advanced.
We’d like to thank IFISA for the opportunity and look forward to continued dialogue with FISOs and other frontline professionals as we move toward a more automated, yet human-centred, future in aviation.