NASA's First 'A' is Still Important to U.S. Economy
John W. Douglass, AIA President & CEO

As House and Senate negotiators hammer out the details of NASA funding in conference, they will make major decisions about an area we can no longer afford to shortchange  aeronautics research and development.

Since its days as the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been the world leader in aeronautics research. A quick look to the sky would likely reveal the direct impact of NASA advances on aircraft, from environmental improvements to propulsion technology, and many other enhancements. Through its consistent development and demonstration of next-generation aviation concepts, no agency has captured our nation's imagination and motivated new engineers and scientists as frequently and as powerfully as NASA.

The health of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate is critical to the continued growth of the U.S. aeronautics industry and the future of our nation's airspace system. Unfortunately, federal budgets over the past 10 years severely cut funding for these important parts of NASA's mission, and more cuts are possible. For example, the budget for the directorate is projected to fall to just $717.6 million by 2010.

Cuts such as these would paint an even bleaker picture for the future of aeronautics research. These cuts eliminate all funding for research into advanced engine and rotorcraft technology and will put domestic manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage to our foreign counterparts. The impact would take place over a wide swath of the aerospace industry, including the future of air traffic management and the ongoing competition for dominance in the global civil-aviation marketplace.

This year looked to be more of the same until forward-thinking members of both the House and Senate increased funding for NASA aeronautics. House Science, State, Justice, Commerce and Related Agencies Subcommittee Chairman Frank Wolf (R-Va.) and ranking member Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.) added $53.9 million to the bill, while Sens. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) and George Allen (R-Va.) secured an extra $7 million in the Senate. The House figure would keep funding at $906.2 million in fiscal year 2006.

As called for by the Commission on the Future of the United States Aerospace Industry, a panel on which I served, the federal government recently began an effort to redesign the national airspace system through the multiagency Joint Planning and Development Office. It will be a highly complex, wide-reaching and expensive task, but it is one we must complete to keep up with expected increases in passenger, military and cargo traffic.

NASA plays an important role in this project as the agency charged with conducting a large portion of the necessary research. Continued cuts to the aeronautics budget would put the future of the next-generation air-transportation system in jeopardy.

Lawmakers have included another commission recommendation  establishing a national aeronautics policy  and the aerospace industry stands ready to work with leaders to ensure a sensible and comprehensive document.

Maintaining U.S. aviation leadership is critical to our national economic health, with the aerospace industry providing our nation's largest trade surplus ($31 billion in 2004). The federal government must realize the importance of aviation to our national economy by resuming its traditional role of investing in pre-competitive aeronautics research.

I urge conferees to embrace the $906.2 million figure for NASA aeronautics research in the 2006 science, state, justice, commerce and related agencies appropriations bill. This funding would allow for additional breakthroughs in areas such as propulsion, air traffic management, sonic-boom reduction, rotorcraft, hypersonics and other technologies while ensuring the availability of critical research facilities as we develop the national aeronautics policy.

The aerospace industry also strongly agrees with the House language and supports full funding for the nation's Vision for Space Exploration. We suggest that level funding for aeronautics research in fiscal year 2006 should not affect the goals and associated funding for exploration that have been established by the administration and endorsed by the House bill.

AIA strongly supports the president's vision to return Americans to the moon and to send them to Mars, but we also believe NASA should continue to fulfill its traditional role in aeronautics research. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration should be just that.

Douglass, J.W. (2005, October 19). NASA's first 'A' is still iImportant to U.S. economy. The Hill. Retrieved from Aerospace Industries Association

The First A in NASA

    Throughout the years, NASA aeronautics research has contributed directly to an improved quality of life for all Americans. NASA plays a national leadership role in exploring advanced technologies to improve the safety, efficiency, performance, and environmental acceptability of U.S. aircraft. It has developed state-of-the-art wind tunnels and test facilities for R&D testing and has a world-class staff of scientists, engineers, and technicians.

    Virtually every U.S. aircraft now flying carries NASA-developed innovations. But the press and public seem to have forgotten NASA's aeronautical roots and its vital aeronautical research mission. And it would appear that the president, Congress, and NASA's top management have forgotten as well, since funding for aeronautical research has declined from $900 million in FY98 to about $646 million in FY00, and remains constant, at about $670 million (just 4.8% of the NASA budget), in the president's 2001 budget submittal to Congress.

    Coupled with this came a scaling back of important research and support for test facilities. In FY00 NASA eliminated all work on developing the technologies for a future supersonic airliner. It also cancelled the advanced subsonic technology program, which was focused on pre-competitive technologies that would ultimately make U.S. aircraft more efficient, improve noise and emissions, and reduce ticket prices. And, it has significantly reduced its base R&T funding. Meanwhile, European competitors have increased their investment in aeronautics research by about 35%. They have built new state-of-the-art wind tunnels that in some respects are better than their U.S. counterparts. Less than 10 years ago, the U.S. had more than 70% of the world market for commercial aircraft. Today that share is estimated at less than 50%.

    What is desperately needed now is for Congress and the administration to provide adequate funds for aeronautics research. This will require some difficult decisions, since the pressure on NASA's total budget is increasing. The Shuttle fleet is aging and its operational costs are going up, and International Space Station costs are running a lot higher than the early estimates.

    NASA needs increased funding for support of military aircraft technologies; for noise and emissions research; to explore high-risk concepts for an economically viable, environmentally friendly supersonic airliner; for the Small Aircraft Transportation System concept; and for upgrading existing test facilities and building new wind tunnels.

    Some of these issues are addressed to some extent in the new budget proposal. However, the cost of adequately funding the needed aeronautics research would be about an additional $400 million annually (only a 2.9% increase to NASA's FY00 budget) and a one-time investment for new wind tunnels of about $1 billion spread over about 8-10 years.

    What is at stake without this adequate funding? The U.S. could become second-rate in military air power, with serious consequences for our national defense. We could lose the two or so high-paying jobs that go with being a leader in commercial aircraft sales, and put at risk the largest positive contributor to the U.S. balance of trade.

    It's time to put the first A back in NASA. Past investments in NASA aeronautics have paid off handsomely to our quality of life and to world peace. Let's not be shortsighted now by continuing to underfund this essential investment in our future.

Roy Harris Jr.
Former Director for Aeronautics,
NASA-Langley (Ret.)

Harris, R. (2000, March). The first A in NASA. Aerospace America, 38 (3).