Safety and Human performance

Air Traffic Management

08 September 2026

NLR system enables safe flight of medical ANWB drones

Over the past year, Royal Dutch Touring Club (ANWB), the Netherlands’ leading touring and mobility organisation, flew a drone carrying medical supplies between hospitals in Zwolle and Meppel. To ensure safe flight, they used FlightCatcher, a system that tracks all air traffic around the drone corridor and alerts the operator if any other aircraft enter the area.

Air Traffic Management

29 May 2026

Booklet: R&D solutions for Air Traffic Management

The challenge for civil aviation operators is to achieve competitive and sustainable aviation. The growing demand to increase efficiency, sustainability, safety and security, enhance resilience and reduce costs requires innovative solutions.

Safety and Human performance

16 December 2025

Cosmic radiation threatens the reliability of aircraft systems

Recently, a remarkable incident made the news: thousands of Airbus aircraft worldwide were grounded after cosmic radiation disrupted digital electronic systems. A problem long familiar in space applications is becoming increasingly relevant for aviation. Ongoing digitalisation is making modern systems more vulnerable to invisible radiation from space.

Safety and Human performance

15 July 2025

Fatigue Risk Management

In aviation operations, managing fatigue is essential as it diminishes an individual’s ability to perform almost all operational tasks. This clearly has implications for operational efficiency, but in situations where individuals are undertaking safety-critical activities, fatigue-effected performance can also have consequences for safety outcomes.

Safety and Human performance

09 July 2025

Effectiveness of flight time limitations for aircrew members

The Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) and its partners have completed a comprehensive research study on the effectiveness of current EU flight duty time limitations and rest requirements for aircrew members. The study, known as FTL2.0, aimed to assess whether current regulations provide sufficient protection against fatigue among aircrew members. The results of this research study have deepened the understanding of fatigue risks in commercial aviation and validated the current regulatory approach.

Safety and Human performance

28 March 2025

Safety Culture

In the aviation industry, achieving exceptional safety standards is paramount. At NLR, we understand that a strong safety culture is the foundation upon which safety excellence is built. Our seven-step safety culture improvement approach is designed to help organisations like yours become number one in safety by identifying and reinforcing weak areas, while leveraging existing strengths. Unlike traditional safety culture assessments that provide a fragmented view without actionable advice, our solution offers a tailored approach that empowers organisations to take their safety culture to the next level.

Safety and Human performance

25 February 2025

Accident and incident investigation

NLR can provide expert support during accident or incident investigations, offering specialist advice and analysis of critical data such as flight or radar records. Our team can also delve into the details of flight performance and dynamics, as well as investigate systems, components, materials, or structures through testing and analysis. This helps to uncover the root causes of incidents and inform safety improvements.