Initiatives | Innovation | Aena

Corporative

At Aena, we believe that innovation is key to improving our services, boosting operational efficiency and creating value for our customers and society. To this end, we create strategic alliances with companies in the technology and services sector, promoting initiatives that allow us to explore, validate and implement innovative solutions.

Each of these strategic partnerships aims to generate specific benefits in our processes and operations, in line with our strategic plan. Below we share information on the initiatives, which we continue to drive forward to strengthen our position in the airport sector.

Innovation agreements

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In 2025

Evacuation system based on smart lighting

Date

26/03/2025

Colaboration with

Zemper

Object

The goal of the pilot is to assess the feasibility of implementing innovative emergency lighting systems for airport facilities.

Validity

26/03/2025 – 26/9/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations

Bird Detection using AI cameras

Date

03/06/2025

Colaboration with

CRIDA - ATM R&D&i Reference Centre

Object

The goal is to improve real-time bird detection using AI cameras and to expand information available on birdlife in the airport surroundings, as well as the identification of areas with a higher density of birds.

Validity

03/06/2025 – 03/06/2026

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations

Detection and Repelling of small mammals on perimeter fencing with AI

Date

03/06/2025

Colaboration with

Flox Robotics

Object

Technology based on static devices located on perimeter fencing with wildlife detection systems using cameras, AI classification and sound repelling.

Validity

03/06/2025 – 03/06/2026

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations

Obstacle marker monitor

Date

25/03/2025

Colaboration with

Industrias Electricas Soler

Object

System for monitoring the operation of obstacle markers remotely in order to optimise the visual inspection process and status of obstacle markers in the vicinity of the airport.

Validity

25/03/2025 - 25/09/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

In 2024

Capacity control in the arrivals area

Date

18/10/2024

Colaboration with

TEKNEI

Object

Use sensors to monitor Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals emitted by mobile devices in the baggage reclaim carousel area of the airport, analysing presence and mobility in the area.

Validity

18/10/2024 – 18/02/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Drone mission management platform

Date

16/10/2024

Colaboration with

Zelenza

Object

Validate the operation of a drone management platform, which will facilitate the management and launch of drone missions.

Validity

16/10/2024 – 16/10/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Interactive family play area

Date

13/09/2024

Colaboration with

iWall

Object

Install a new interactive family play area designed to offer more than 17 different games, testing usage and user satisfaction.

Validity

13/09/2024 – 27/12/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Autonomous perimeter surveillance robot

Date

30/04/2024

Colaboration with

Star Robotics

Object

Validate the operation of an autonomous perimeter surveillance robot in order to check its capacity to detect intruders and send alerts to the security centre, with the use of artificial intelligence.

Validity

30/04/2024 – 30/04/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Lost property platform

Date

30/04/2024

Colaboration with

FindMyLost

Object

Analyse improved efficiency and agility in lost property management with a lost property management platform, assessing user satisfaction in terms of service quality and usability.

Validity

30/04/2024 – 30/04/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Passenger traceability and connectivity (integrated in SKYPASS project)

Date

29/04/2024

Colaboration with

GALGUS

Object

Test a technological solution for user counting and a Passpoint-based technological solution for seamless transition between 5G mobile and Wi-Fi networks.

Validity

29/04/2024 – 28/04/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Smart lockers

Date

05/04/2024

Colaboration with

Columat

Object

Install a Smart Locker with different types of compartments, touch screen and QR reader, with the aim of analysing the technical and operational feasibility of the solution for the identified use cases, as well as assessing user satisfaction, service quality and usability, and identifying new services to offer the user.

Validity

05/04/2024 – 05/04/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

AI Assistant for the Airport Management Centre

Date

05/03/2024

Colaboration with

EY (Ernst & Young)

Object

Test an artificial intelligence assistant to facilitate decision-making in the Airport Management Centre, based on operational procedures and general airport rules.

Validity

05/03/2024 – 30/09/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Waste management at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport

Date

27/02/2024

Colaboration with

EcoCuadrado

Object

Determine the potential for change in waste management at the airport and whether waste management in other sectors can be applied at the airport.

Validity

27/02/2024 – 11/10/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Autonomous baggage vehicle at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport

Date

31/01/2024

Colaboration with

Groundforce

Object

Validate the driving of an autonomous vehicle for baggage transport inside the airport apron.

Validity

31/01/2024 – 09/07/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

H2 hubs at airports

Date

25/01/2024

Colaboration with

Airbus, Repsol, Iberia, Air Nostrum and Exolum

Object

To provide the parties with a broad understanding of the process of supplying hydrogen (gaseous and/or liquid) to airports, the necessary adaptation of airport infrastructures and ground operations, and the for the deployment of H2 commercial aviation.

Validity

25/01/2024 – 25/01/2026

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

In 2023

Cargo container monitoring

Date

15/12/2023

Colaboration with

Inditex and AllRead

Object

Verify the use of video-analysis to monitor loading process and compare the results obtained with traditional processes.

Validity

15/12/2023 – 29/11/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Vertical garden at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport

Date

07/12/2023

Colaboration with

Murarte

Object

Test the effectiveness of a decontaminating vertical garden using nanotechnology (NaNOx). A synthetic vertical garden to decontaminate greenhouse gases will be tested, consisting of a series of panels arranged vertically, forming a wall with three-dimensional floral decoration.

Validity

07/12/2023 – 07/06/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Bins with IoT

Date

29/11/2023

Colaboration with

Vilagrasa

Object

Assess operational efficiency and cost savings using a waste bin data monitoring system.

Validity

29/11/2023 – 14/11/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Self check-in at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport

Date

31/10/2023

Colaboration with

Ryanair Airware

Object

Check the feasibility of including stand-alone check-in devices integrated with the airline's mobile application.

Validity

31/10/2023 – 31/10/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Management of people with reduced mobility at the Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas, Palma de Mallorca and Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández airports

Date

13/10/2023

Colaboration with

GTD Systems

Object

Test and evaluate the functional and technical feasibility of a new service management system for people with reduced mobility, as a possible replacement for Aena's current SGPMR system.

Validity

13/10/2023 – 27/12/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Drone fleet and pilot management platform

Date

13/10/2023

Colaboration with

ITG

Object

Test the operation of a drone management platform, which is cloud-based with software tools and utilities aimed at facilitating the management, operation and administration of a drone operator's daily activity.

Validity

13/10/2023 – 13/04/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

PAPI light verification and ILS and LOC signal checking with drones

Date

01/09/2023

Colaboration with

DroneX and GMV

Object

Test the feasibility of verification of PAPI lights and ILS and LOC signal checking with drones.

Validity

01/09/2023 – 01/09/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Feasibility study for the deployment of advanced air mobility and analysis of the operation of a vertiport

Date

26/07/2023

Colaboration with

UrbanV and Volocopter

Object

Study the feasibility of Urban Air Mobility in the Aena airport network, including the possibility of carrying out an operational proof of concept (Vertiport Tech Lab).

Validity

26/07/2023 – 29/11/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Window and façade cleaning with drones

Date

19/07/2023

Colaboration with

KTV Working drone

Object

Check the technical and economic feasibility of cleaning certain facilities using drones.

Validity

19/07/2023 – 19/03/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

FOD detection with mobile solution

Date

10/03/2023

Colaboration with

Oreyeon

Object

Demonstrate runway object detection system capabilities and performance taking into account the requirements of applicable regulations.

Validity

10/03/2023 – 10/03/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

RFID baggage tracking

Date

19/01/2023

Colaboration with

Binter

Object

Verify the operation of RFID tags for baggage tracking.

Validity

19/01/2023 – 19/07/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

In 2022

Automatic boarding bridge control at Vigo Airport

Date

02/11/2022

Colaboration with

TKAS

Object

Test and evaluate different algorithms to advance in the achievement of a remote driving system for autonomous boarding bridges.

Validity

02/11/2022 – 16/05/2025

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Baggage scanning in arrivals at Palma de Mallorca Airport

Date

27/07/2022

Colaboration with

SICK

Object

Design an arrivals baggage scanning arch.

Validity

27/07/2022 – 27/07/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Information exchange between airport and city (Smart Cities)

Date

05/07/2022

Colaboration with

Malaga City Hall

Object

Improve the traveller experience by exchanging information between the airport and the city.

Validity

05/07/2022 – 05/07/2027

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Incident resolution platform at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport

Date

15/06/2022

Colaboration with

GECOR

Object

Evaluate a cross-cutting incident resolution platform, using artificial intelligence for automatic image identification.

Validity

15/06/2022 – 30/11/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Platform for predictive maintenance at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport

Date

01/06/2022

Colaboration with

TKE

Object

Evaluate a predictive maintenance technology solution, using real-time data, in the lift industry.

Validity

01/06/2022 – 31/05/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Runway condition assessment tool

Date

11/05/2022

Colaboration with

NAVBLUE

Object

Facilitate runway condition assessment by providing real-time data.

Validity

11/05/2022 – 25/07/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Portable charger service at Adolfo Suárez Madrid - Barajas Airport

Date

07/04/2022

Colaboration with

Chargy Technologies, S.L

Object

Analyse how travellers appreciate a service where they can pick up a portable battery at one charging station and return it to another charging station.

Validity

07/04/2022 – 18/12/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Information exchange between airport and city (Smart Cities)

Date

25/03/2022

Colaboration with

Concello de A Coruña

Object

Improve the traveller experience by exchanging information between the airport and the city.

Validity

25/03/2022 – 25/03/2027

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Robotic falconry for wildlife control with drones

Date

07/03/2022

Colaboration with

Arquimea

Object

Evaluate the incorporation of drones for wildlife monitoring.

Validity

07/03/2022 – 07/03/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Video analysis for queue management at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport

Date

23/02/2022

Colaboration with

Bee the Data

Object

Validate the use of real-time images (not recorded), provided by the cameras already installed at the airport, for flow and queue management at points of interest and the measurement of passenger transit time.

Validity

23/02/2022 – 23/08/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Information exchange between airport and city (Smart Cities)

Date

26/01/2022

Colaboration with

Seville City Council

Object

Improve the traveller experience by exchanging information between the airport and the city.

Validity

26/01/2022 – 26/01/2027

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

In 2021

Odour sensor in the toilets at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport.

Date

19/10/2021

Colaboration with

Elecnor

Object

Installation of the necessary sensors in a passenger toilet for air quality control, monitoring indicator levels in real time, as well as displaying warnings when the thresholds defined for each indicator are exceeded.

Validity

19/10/2021 – 19/04/2021

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Baggage360

Date

30/09/2021

Colaboration with

SIEMENS IBERIA

Object

Obtain greater transparency in baggage handling processes from start to finish.

Validity

30/09/2021 – 30/09/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Ionic module at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport

Date

29/09/2021

Colaboration with

Ionic module

Object

Install, operate and maintain an ionic module to validate the generation of electrical energy using this technology.

Validity

29/09/2021 – 16/09/2024

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Information exchange between airport and city (Smart Cities)

Date

29/09/2021

Colaboration with

Vigo Council

Object

Improve the traveller experience by exchanging information between the airport and the city.

Validity

29/09/2021 – 29/09/2026

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Information exchange between airport and city (Smart Cities)

Date

29/09/2021

Colaboration with

Valencia City Council

Object

Improve the traveller experience by exchanging information between the airport and the city.

Validity

29/09/2021 – 29/09/2026

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Video analysis for queue management at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport

Date

08/09/2021

Colaboration with

Infinity Neural

Object

Validate the use of real-time (non-recorded) images, provided by the cameras already installed at the airport, for queue management at the airport.

Validity

08/09/2021 – 08/03/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Drone-based pavement monitoring

Date

13/08/2021

Colaboration with

Soologic

Object

Assess the feasibility of using drones to inspect pavement conditions.

Validity

13/08/2021 – 13/08/2023

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Artificial intelligence to improve and control ventilation systems at Valencia Airport

Date

04/08/2021

Colaboration with

SENER

Object

Evaluate an AI-based technological solution for the improvement and control of ventilation systems in the boarding area.

Validity

04/08/2021 – 03/08/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Biometrics boarding at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport

Date

02/06/2021

Colaboration with

Vueling, Idemia, IER/easIER, Mobbeel and Materna

Object

Integrate a biometric facial system for check-in, self bag drop (access to security checkpoint and boarding, with the possibility of registration), using the Aena and VUELING applications and at shared-use kiosks.

Validity

02/06/2021 – 30/06/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Maintenance improvement system at Bilbao Airport

Date

18/03/2021

Colaboration with

AINGURA

Object

Evaluate maintenance service optimisation by means of a system for estimating the remaining service life of electromechanical devices.

Validity

18/03/2021 – 22/02/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Remote control of boarding bridges with automatic docking

Date

20/01/2021

Colaboration with

TKAS

Object

Test the feasibility of remotely driving a set of bridges from a point outside the airport. Validate automatic docking and undocking from the remote station.

Validity

20/01/2021 – 30/09/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Autonomous PRM chair at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport

Date

01/01/2021

Colaboration with

Acciona and A&K

Object

Validate an autonomous wheelchair for passengers with reduced mobility, with the aim of improving the experience of these passengers at airports.

Validity

01/01/2021 – 01/06/2021

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

In 2020

Augmented reality training at Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport

Date

01/09/2020

Colaboration with

Ryanair

Object

Develop augmented reality training content for airline ground staff.

Validity

01/09/2020 – 10/03/2021

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Remote control of boarding bridges at Seville Airport

Date

27/01/2020

Colaboration with

Adelte

Object

Test the feasibility of remotely driving a set of bridges from a localised point within the airport.

Validity

27/01/2020 – 11/06/2021

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

En 2019

Boarding by biometrics at Adolfo Suárez Madrid - Barajas Airport

Date

29/10/2019

Colaboration with

Iberia, IECISA, Gunnebo and Thales

Object

Integrate a facial biometric system for check-in, security checkpoint and boarding processes, with the possibility of registration using the Iberia and Aena APPs.

Validity

29/10/2019 – 31/12/2021

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

Technical and operational feasibility of the use of drones at airports for different use cases

Date

16/10/2019

Colaboration with

Canard Drones

Object

Validate the methodology and feasibility of the use of drones in the following activities: calibration of PAPIS with drones; detection, characterisation and measurement of obstacles with drones and topographic survey; calibration of lights and navigation aids and inspection of pavements with drones.

Validity

16/10/2019 – 16/10/2022

Cost for Aena

No financial obligations.

No se ha encontrado ningún resultado.

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