Raytheon Wins NASA Contract

Raytheon Co. of Lexington, Mass., has been awarded an $8.3 million development order from NASA's Ames Research Center for its Airport Surface Management System.

The task order was awarded under NASA's Air Traffic Management System Development and Integration contract.

The surface management system is a decision support tool to assist air traffic controllers and air carriers in managing the movement of aircraft to improve airport capacity, efficiency, flexibility and safety.

The first phase of the system will develop a prototype to predict and manage aircraft departure demand and achieve strategic arrival and departure interoperability.

Phase two will focus on the use of airport surface surveillance and the tactical management of departures.

"Raytheon, NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration are committed to developing this initial surface management system functionality, targeted to provide benefits at busy airports, in time for transfer to the FAA's Free Flight Phase 2 program," said Bob Eckel, Raytheon's vice president of domestic air traffic control programs.

"This research and development effort is a critical step toward future airport surface automation and will provide shared departure situational awareness between air traffic control facilities and air carriers that is not available," he said.