The Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) and publishing partners Unmanned Airspace / Urban Air Mobility News and Global Airspace Radar announce the return of the Seamless Skies Awards programme for Airspace World 2027.
The Seamless Skies Awards have been developed to recognise exceptional achievements in the global air traffic management (ATM) and UAS traffic management (UTM) sectors during 2026.
The shortlisted finalists will be announced in advance of and winners/runner-ups will be announced at Airspace World 2027. This is the only truly global event that brings the worlds of crewed and uncrewed aviation together to decide an equitable and progressive global airspace.
Similar to last year’s programme there will be six award categories open to all entrants and the CANSO person of the year award. Below are the detailed descriptions of each of the main award categories:
Collaborative operations for sustainable skies
This award recognises successful collaborations/partnerships between ANSPs, airlines, airports, military organisations, regulators and other stakeholders to improve efficiency, resilience and sustainability. Working together for better outcomes.
Innovative solutions to enable future skies
Submissions should focus on innovations that are accelerating aviation modernisation. Topics should include themes such as automation, digital technologies and interoperable systems that are enabling safer, smarter and more efficient airspace. Entries in this category need to explain how the project is truly innovating the way an industry challenge is being addressed.
Airspace safety, security & resilience
Trust is a key component in our increasingly complex world. This category acknowledges projects that resulted in strengthening safety, cyber resilience and operational continuity while embracing automation and digital technologies.
Services unlocking the potential of uncrewed aviation
Regulators, ANSPs and technology providers are working to enable safe integration of uncrewed aircraft into shared airspace. This is only part of the story. This award recognises projects that enable services within the lower airspace economy. Successful services are the cornerstone for revenue growth in this category and a scalable airspace ecosystem.
People, skills & next-gen technology
This award celebrates projects/companies who have developed programmes to support the workforce of tomorrow. This begins with attracting and developing the required talent. How do we bring more/different skills into our industry and embrace people with different backgrounds and perspectives. How do we make aviation attractive to a younger workforce? This is only the first step, next-generation technology then needs to support our workforce. How is technology being used to ensure a successful result once the workforce is onboard?
Defence & military
With world events continuing to impact our airspace ecosystem, the importance of strengthening civil-military collaboration cannot be overlooked. This new award category for 2027 looks to recognise exceptional efforts in this area. How are defence organisations and civil aviation stakeholders working together to create more resilient, flexible and efficient airspace?
CANSO person of the year
The CANSO person of the year award recognises a member of the CANSO community who has gone above and beyond to raise the bar in air traffic management. For 2027, nominations will be processed through the standard awards entry portal. Individuals you believe should be recognised for their achievements during the calendar year can be nominated. Nominees need to be from CANSO member organisations.
Check out the Awards page on the Global Airspace Radar website for helpful tips as to what programmes fit into each of the categories. It’s not too early to already think about your entries for this year!
Stay tuned for upcoming announcements regarding the judging panel, entry opening date and the Airspace World awards ceremony.
For more information