The new seven-year contract with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will extend and expand the work of the original National Center of Excellence for Aviation Operations Research (NEXTOR). Research expenditures could total as much as $60M over the length of the contract.

"This is additional evidence that the College of Engineering at Purdue has developed significant capabilities in aviation and air transportation research over the past several years, in large part through the System of Systems Signature Area hiring," says Prof. Crossley. "We look forward to working with our colleagues to help address issues that the FAA, the airlines, and other users of the National Airspace System face as they seek to improve safety, efficiency and availability of air transportation."

Purdue, along with Georgia Institute of Technology and The Ohio State University, join the five universities involved in the original NEXTOR program: the University of Maryland, George Mason University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of California – Berkeley, and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

These eight core NEXTOR II members are being joined by five affiliates: Embry Riddle, Morgan State University, San Jose State University, University of South Florida and University of Colorado. The affiliates bring individual talent and facilities to the team and expand the involvement to a more diverse group of faculty and students.

The original NEXTOR program was one of the five Centers of Excellence created by the FAA to lead the aviation community in advancing new ideas and paradigms for aviation operations, educating and training aviation professionals, and promoting knowledge transfer among industry, government and academic leaders.