Airborne wind energy is the central theme of several projects funded by the European Union within its framework programme Horizon 2020. This presentation highlights two specific projects that are coordinated by TU Delft, AWESCO and REACH, illustrating how the two parallel actions not only complement each other but create a synergy effect, interleaving also with other parallel actions. Examples for parallel actions are the projects AMPYXAP3, EK200-AWESOME and NextWind, all in the SME Instrument scheme, however, in different phases.