ITA Airways adopts satellite technology developed by ESA and Viasat to upgrade safety and fuel efficiency

16 Dec 2025

ITA Airways, Italy’s reference airline, has announced its adoption of the Iris system for Air Traffic Service (ATS), jointly developed by Viasat and the European Space Agency (ESA) Directorate for Connectivity and Secure Communications.

Iris will enable ITA to optimise aircraft routes and fuel consumption, increasing flight safety whilst curtailing CO₂ emissions and delays. These applications are empowered by a satellite data link service complementing traditional ground-based infrastructure.

The introduction of Iris removes a bottleneck created by the explosion of data generated by modern aircraft. By distributing the data across ground and satellite networks, Iris creates a multi-link capability that will enable airlines and Air Traffic Management (ATM) to handle a larger volume of data in real time.

Since 2015, Viasat, a global leader in satellite communications, has partnered with ESA as an Iris Service Provider and key project partner (ESSP) to power the Iris service with their SwiftBroadband – Safety (SB-S) connectivity platform.

The Iris program is funded and promoted by ESA Connectivity and Secure Communications under the Space Systems for Safety and Security (4S) strategic programme Line of its Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) programme, and in line with the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) launched by the European Commission.

Iris is the only validated technology capable of pioneering these modern Airline Operational Communication and ATS standards. It showcases ESA Connectivity and Secure Communications’ commitment to delivering practical space-based applications through partnerships with Europe’s space industry and commercializing viable solutions to concrete challenges.

“With the addition of ITA Airways to the Iris service, another milestone has been achieved in supporting the European Commission’s Single European Sky vision for an efficient and environmentally friendly European airspace. The adoption of Iris is a key milestone for space-based solutions, supporting European Air Traffic Management, which will – in turn – pave the way for global use. By supporting Iris through an ESA public-private partnership, we are delighted to combine our expertise with those of leading aviation actors across the continent and beyond it,” said Laurent Jaffart, Director of ESA’s Connectivity and Secure Communications.

“We’re thrilled to see Iris taking to the skies on ITA Airways’ flights across Europe,” said Joel Klooster, SVP Flight Safety and Advanced Air Mobility at Viasat. “ITA has been committed to the goals of the Single European Skies initiative for a long time, and it’s been fantastic to work so closely with them, as well as our partners ESA and ESSP, to bring the benefits of Iris’ next-generation technology to more flights and passengers across Europe. We look forward to seeing success with these flights, and to rolling out the program across more routes and airlines soon.”

Iris will follow an initial deployment on four Airbus A320neo across the ITA fleet. One aircraft has already been fully operational since August 2025, introducing Iris in Europe with a view to export its gains in safety and security around the world.