CAELESTIS Final Event at EASN: Pioneering Virtual Prototyping and High-Performance Computing for Next-Gen Aviation
Last week, the vibrant city of Madrid became a hub for European aviation innovation as the CAELESTIS project held its final event within the framework of the EASN 15th International Conference. Hosted at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, this gathering marked a pivotal moment—bringing together premier scientists, engineers, industry experts, and project partners to reflect on CAELESTIS’s achievements and chart the path forward for European aviation.
From the outset, the event aimed to create a space where universities, research centres, manufacturers, stakeholders, and regulatory bodies could interact collectively. “The idea of this conference is to get everyone involved in the aviation industry in one single space,” began the opening address, setting the stage for a day where learning, collaboration, and community-building took centre stage.
Attendees were reminded that such inclusive events are essential for reaching goals and for learning from one another—ultimately building better solutions and approaches through exchange and dialogue. CAELESTIS itself is “about generating a simulation ecosystem in order to improve the design of new aircraft components,” penetrating every phase from design through manufacturing.
Key Project Achievements
- Data-Driven Design: Researchers gave technical overviews of how CAELESTIS leverages vast amounts of data in real time to improve component design, employing robust simulation models to accelerate and validate engineering processes.
- Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) & Resin Transfer Molding (RTM): The team demonstrated how dry fibres are placed, infused, and monitored, highlighting innovations that allow for the detection and mitigation of defects, such as porosity, which can harm material strength.
- Real-Time Simulation: One of the project’s crowning achievements is the ability to oversee and simulate manufacturing in real time, thanks to high-fidelity workflows powered by advanced machine learning and Monte Carlo methods. These workflows generate synthetic data and structural simulations, making testing faster, more reliable, and cost-effective—more than 50,000 high-fidelity simulations were completed in close partnership with the University of Girona.
- Virtual Testing: Rather than relying solely on costly, time-consuming laboratory testing, CAELESTIS’s virtual tools now enable researchers to simulate hundreds of specimen tests efficiently, paving the way for scalable composite manufacturing.
Panel Discussion: The Future of Digital Aviation
A deeply engaging panel discussion, moderated by Jean Paul Judson, tackled some of the sector’s toughest questions: digital innovation, accelerating sustainable solutions, and integrating simulations and smart materials into industry at scale. Panelists included Janusz Poplawski (Lortek), Julian de Marchi (NLR), Luca Briganti (AIRBUS), Cristian Builes (AIMEN), and others, who delved into current trends and regulatory challenges.
Several panelists underscored the changing pace of aircraft development. “Back then, you had 10 to 15 years of development time for an aircraft. Right now, it’s not going at that pace,” explained one speaker. “With global emissions targets and European Union goals for 2035, you need to have a prototype in much less time.” Virtual testing and simulation ecosystems, they agreed, are key tools for meeting both ambitious environmental targets and strict regulatory compliance.
Panelists emphasized that strong cooperation with regulatory bodies is now essential to ensure new digital technologies remain certifiable and safely implementable—especially as products move rapidly from concept to manufacturing.
Sister Horizon Europe Projects Take the Stage
The event also featured rich contributions from several Horizon Europe ‘sister’ projects, demonstrating the shared commitment across the continent to innovation in digital aviation. Speakers from projects like Flash-Comp, Genex, OVERLEAF, and Compostlar presented their latest findings, discussing complementary methods and reinforcing the vision for smarter, cross-linked European research.
Looking Beyond the Horizon: What Comes After CAELESTIS?
In the closing session, speakers turned their focus to what comes next. Can CAELESTIS’s outcomes be adapted for new projects? How do its advances impact the aviation industry at large? The call was clear—results should be disseminated, scaled, and applied, inviting industry-wide cooperation and engagement with the European Commission for maximal impact.
Beyond technical presentations and policy talk, the event was a celebration of pan-European teamwork. “One big positive aspect of European projects is that they involve people from many institutions and companies across Europe. In this project, for instance, we had some of the best researchers in composites working together,” remarked one speaker. Robust partnerships across the continent remain fundamental to transforming research into real-world impact.
Madrid’s CAELESTIS final event offered more than a project milestone—it crystallised the promise of virtual prototyping and digital twins in aviation and demonstrated the collective will of European researchers, manufacturers, and policy shapers to drive the future of flight. With advanced simulation ecosystems, smarter manufacturing, and renewed international collaboration, CAELESTIS sets a benchmark for upcoming Horizon Europe endeavours as we race towards sustainable and innovative skies.
Find out more about RTDS' work with CAELESTIS
As leaders in dissemination, exploitation, communication and collaboration, RTDS is responsible for enabling the uptake of CAELESTIS’ results to achieve scientific, societal, economic and technological impact. This includes executing tailored dissemination and exploitation measures while communicating CAELESTIS solutions and engaging users.
RTDS Association is the Austrian non-profit arm of the RTDS Group supporting implementation and management of European research and innovation projects to optimise the use of results for maximum impact. RTDS has a proven track record in enabling the innovators to move research and technology from the lab to the market.
