The Federal Aviation Administration 2008 portfolio for research and development

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 2008 National Aviation Research Plan (NARP) is a performance-based plan that integrates and describes the FAA research and development (R&D) portfolio. The 2008 NARP supports both the current day-to-day operations of the National Airspace System (NAS) and the future vision for the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The portfolio is comprised of 44 R&D programs that address air traffic management (ATM), aircraft safety, airports, the environment, human factors, operational concepts, aviation weather, unmanned aircraft, and wake turbulence requirements. In the 2008 NARP, ten R&D goals bridge the near-term goals of the FAApsilas strategic Flight Plan, the mid- and longer-term NextGen goals of the Operational Evolution Partnership (OEP), now called the NextGen Implementation Plan, and the work of the Joint Planning and Development Office. This integrated approach enables the FAA to address the current challenges of operating the safest, most efficient air transportation system in the world while building the research foundation for NextGen.