The future of ATC won’t be written on paper

From drones and eVTOLs to the return of supersonic jets, the skies are evolving fast. Yet on the ground, many airport control towers remain stuck in the past. Controllers manage flight operations with paper strips, pens, and legacy systems. Every day, they keep millions of lives safe while relying on technology that is cumbersome, fragmented and outdated. The gap between the skies and the tower has never been wider, and for most towers worldwide, patchy upgrades and paper-based workflows are still the norm.

Recent safety incidents have put a spotlight on the challenges of relying on outdated ATC infrastructure. These are no longer isolated concerns; they reveal a growing pressure that the industry can’t afford to ignore. The good news is that policymakers are beginning to act. ICAO is leading a push to digitalise air traffic management, the FAA has underpinned a modernisation initiative for a long-overdue overhaul of legacy infrastructure and the UK’s CAA is overseeing the Airspace Modernisation Strategy, aiming to improve safety, efficiency, and environmental performance.

Despite these efforts, there’s a clear problem: the current generation of modern systems was built for big, high-budget airports. These expensive and rigid systems require complex implementation, making them a poor fit for thousands of smaller airports and airfields that also need urgent upgrades. This leaves the vast majority of towers facing growing traffic and operational complexity with systems that were never built for today’s challenges. 

How long must controllers wait to get the tools that match the pace and complexity of modern air traffic?

It’s time for a new approach, one that delivers a versatile and affordable solution, without the burden of lengthy rollouts or heavyweight project management. That is the principle behind Skytower, the world’s first Software-as-a-Service flight strip platform.

At the heart of Skytower is a simple philosophy: controllers come first. The platform isn’t about replacing paper; it’s about amplifying controller expertise and operational efficiency. Skytower combines the familiarity and workflow logic that controllers value in traditional paper strips with intuitive digital solutions that enhance efficiency, safety, and focus. The result is a system that feels simple and familiar, yet is designed with the elegant and precise digital interface needed for modern air traffic control.

For Ops management, Skytower respects your time by leveraging its strategic cloud-based advantages. Deployment takes minutes, not months or years, minimising disruption and cost. The platform scales effortlessly with traffic demand, integrates seamlessly with external systems via APIs and can be deployed to any location in the world. 

With continuous updates, the system has no fixed lifespan, providing a platform your team can depend on indefinitely. Accurate digital records simplify compliance, reporting and planning, cutting the administrative burden while strengthening accountability. In short, it empowers your team to focus on what matters most, keeping your operation running smoothly.

We’ve heard the scepticism: ‘It’ll never work in my tower!’ And we get it. But Skytower was built to bring affordable modernisation to any tower, anywhere. With its powerful configuration hub, control stays where it belongs: with you. Your team can shape the system to fit your operation, going from setup to live in just hours. And if your operations evolve, your team can quickly adapt the system to match. Whether you’re an international hub, regional airport, airfield, or heliport, this is modern ATC without the nonsense, where change happens in minutes, not months.

From concept to control room, Skytower has UK CAA approval across multiple locations. It’s already proving its value at busy aerodromes and high-tempo heliports, boosting safety and efficiency, and delivering a system that controllers love to use. The bottom line? Skytower is built for the thousands of towers ATC technology has left behind and is already transforming operations today.

The future of ATC is here. See it for yourself at www.skyverse.co.uk.