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News Science NASA chief: Hampton Roads could be leader in green aviation
NASA chief says Hampton Roads could be leader in green aviation Cory Nealon
VIRGINIA BEACH  -  NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said Hampton Roads could become a leader in the emerging field of green aviation but he warned the industry won't blossom overnight."It is a possibility, but we're not there yet," Bolden said after giving a speech at an aviation conference Thursday.
Making the region a hub where government, academia and industry develop ways to make aircraft more fuel efficient and less noisy, and improve air traffic control is a priority of U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. The industry could bring billions of dollars of investment to the region, Warner has said.Key to the partnership is NASA, which has led the nation's aeronautical research since the Cold War. A predecessor organization, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, previously had the job.
Bolden said while he discussed the idea with Warner, more work needs to be done before  -  and if  -  Hampton Roads becomes a green aviation hub.The field is poised to grow because airlines are struggling to control costs and ensure that customers arrive on time to their destination. NASA is working the Federal Aviation Administration and other groups to create a more efficient air traffic control system, Bolden said.Perhaps more important to the region  -  and the roughly 3,600 civil and contractor employees at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton  -  is the development of fuel-efficient airplanes.NASA funding for aviation has declined more than twofold since the 1990s  -  it is currently $500 million, less than 3 percent of NASA's $18.5 billion budget. As a result, Langley shed more than a thousand civil service jobs and shuttered wind tunnels during the past two decades.Mark Moore, a researcher at Langley, noted the decline when asking Bolden what can be done to boost the industry."I think we actually have to demand more risks," said Bolden, a former Marine Corps fighter pilot. "You have to be willing to take chances and get it wrong sometimes."The industry could receive a boost from President Barack Obama's order that requires federal agencies to curb energy use and cut greenhouse gas emissions.The Defense Department, which uses more fuel than all federal agencies combined, has been particularly aggressive in this area. And preliminary research suggests that blended wing aircraft, which eschew the traditional tube shaped airplane in favor of a sleeker bat-like design, could reduce jet fuel consumption by 70 percent.But the commercial airline industry is dominated by a handful of large corporations, such as Boeing, that have been slow to embrace green aviation. Some industry analysts say such a partnership is not feasible without Boeing's participation.The Hampton-based NASA Aeronautic Support Team, which is working with Warner, previously said a plan to make Hampton Roads as green aviation hub could be submitted to Congress as part of Obama's 2013 fiscal budget.
Air Transportation Industry