February 1995
Strategic Enterprises
Aeronautics Enterprise
For over 75 years, NASA and its predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, have worked closely with U.S. industry, universities, and other Federal agencies to give the United States a preeminent position in aeronautics. Today, aeronautics plays a vital role in the economic health and national security of the Nation, helping to generate almost one million high-quality jobs, over $40 billion in annual exports, and almost $30 billion in a positive balance of trade. The U.S. position, however, is being challenged by aggressive international competition. Future U.S. competitiveness in aeronautics, as well as the continued safety and productivity of the Nation's air transportation system, is dependent upon a coordinated and effective national investment in aeronautical research and technology. NASA's Aeronautics Enterprise will take a leadership role, in conjunction with industry, academia, the Department of Defense (DoD), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and other members of the national aeronautical community, to ensure that investments are effectively defined and coordinated.
NASA's Aeronautics Enterprise will pioneer the identification, development, verification, transfer, application, and commercialization of high-payoff aeronautics technologies. It seeks to promote economic growth and security and enhance U.S. competitiveness through safe, superior, and environmentally compatible U.S. civil and military aircraft and through a safe, efficient national aviation system. This Enterprise will work closely with its aeronautics customers, including U.S. industry, the university community, DoD, and FAA, to ensure that its technology products and services add value, are timely, and have been developed to the level at which the customer can confidently make decisions regarding the application of those technologies.
The goals of the Aeronautics Enterprise are to:
- Develop high-payoff technologies for a new generation of environmentally compatible, economic subsonic aircraft and a safe, highly productive global air transportation system.
- Develop the technology base for an economically viable and environmentally compatible high-speed civil transport.
- Develop the technology options for new capabilities in high-performance aircraft.
- Develop and demonstrate technologies for air-breathing hypersonic flight.
- Develop advanced concepts, understanding of physical phenomena, and theoretical, experimental, and computational tools-including High Performance Computing and Communications technologies-for advanced aerospace systems.
- Develop, maintain, and operate critical national facilities for aeronautical research and for support of its customers and other NASA programs.
In achieving these goals, the Aeronautics Enterprise employs a strategy that emphasizes customer involvement in the planning and conduct of its programs, reengineers the internal operations of NASA's research centers to ensure maximum cost-effectiveness, and increases its emphasis on technology transfer to both aerospace and non-aerospace customers.
Curator: James H. Chi
Last Updated: Tue, Apr 18, 1995