Aeronautical research and development: FAA could improve the way it develops its portfolio and reports on its activities
Actions that meet the intent of the recommendation have been taken.
The development of the FAA’s commercial aviation research and development (R&D) portfolio is critically important to advancing American technological leadership, fostering a vibrant aerospace industry, and improving the safety of the civil aviation system. To achieve these goals, the FAA must carefully manage and oversee its R&D budget of approximately $515 million and maximize its results by collaborating with NASA and the private sector. The FAA’s process for developing its R&D portfolio spans the entire agency and culminates in the National Aeronautical Research Plan, which is submitted annually to Congress and provides an inventory of FAA R&D activities. FAA statutory requirements, guidelines, and best practices for R&D portfolio development call for a strategic approach to portfolio development, including the development of a forward-looking R&D portfolio that can adapt to changes in the environment. In 2017, the GAO reported that the FAA did not fully adhere to requirements, guidelines, and best practices related to its R&D portfolio development process. In particular, the GAO found that the FAA’s actions to develop a forward-looking R&D portfolio capable of adapting to change fall short of legal requirements and key practices. Adopting a strategic approach to portfolio development is important for the FAA and its stakeholders because it can help ensure that the agency conducts both research that meets current, future, and emerging research needs and devote its limited resources to its highest priorities. FAA officials told the GAO that identifying long-term research is inherently difficult. However, without identifying or evaluating long-term research efforts, the FAA will not be as well placed to communicate how it prioritizes long-term R&D that will allow the agency to plan for future research needs. To address these issues, GAO recommended that the FAA take a more strategic approach to identifying research priorities across the agency, including developing guidance to identify long-term priorities and emerging issues. , as part of the FAA’s portfolio development process. In June 2021, the GAO confirmed that the FAA had taken a number of steps to help the agency be more strategic in identifying research priorities. Specifically, the FAA released a redesigned National Aeronautical Research Plan in 2020 that aligns with DOT’s strategic goals of safety, infrastructure, and innovation allowing for a better understanding of the research the FAA conducts at support of these goals. Additionally, the FAA has created an R&D “landscape” to identify long-term priorities and emerging research areas, including in areas such as unmanned aerial systems and supersonic flight, among others. Finally, the FAA has developed guidance for FAA business lines on the FAA R&D portfolio development process, including steps to identify some long-term priorities and emerging problem areas. For example, specific guidance provided to FAA lines of business for R&D portfolio preparation includes questions about program priorities and any research that may be missing. Through these efforts, the FAA will be able to develop a long-term strategic approach to formulating and prioritizing its strategic vision across its entire aviation R&D portfolio.
Actions that meet the intent of the recommendation have been taken.
In April 2017, the GAO reported that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had provided guidance to Program Planning Teams (PPTs) on how they should develop their commercial aviation research and development (R&D) portfolios. . FAA PPTs are responsible for identifying R&D projects for funding in specific research program areas. A best practice identified by GAO for R&D development is to use a transparent process to identify and select projects for funding, as this allows management to understand project decisions and priorities. While the FAA provided guidance to TPPs on R&D portfolio development, the guidance only suggested that TPPs consider describing how they identify and prioritize their R&D needs. As a result, GAO reported that most PPTs lacked a transparent process for selecting R&D projects. To address this issue, GAO recommended that the FAA clarify its portfolio development guidelines to require each PPT to disclose the process it used for project prioritization and selection. In June 2018, the GAO confirmed that the FAA had updated its guidance document for TPPs on the R&D Portfolio Development Process to disclose the prioritization process that each TPP uses to develop their R&D portfolio. FAA officials said documenting the prioritization of R&D efforts has increased the transparency of their processes and allowed for greater sharing of information at meetings where the R&D portfolio is discussed. Officials said the documentation also allows for focused understanding of priorities ahead of meetings. By clarifying its guidance to increase transparency on project prioritization and selection, the FAA aligned its approach with best practices and provided clarification to FAA management to better understand how decisions were made and manage the FAA R&D portfolio.
Actions that meet the intent of the recommendation have been taken.
In 2017, the GAO reported that the FAA’s actions were not fully compliant with requirements, agency guidelines, and best practices related to its R&D project portfolio development, monitoring, and evaluation. of these projects and the production of reports on the portfolio. The GAO found that although the FAA tracks and evaluates its research projects according to best practices, it does not fully meet all legal reporting requirements, such as identifying long-term research resources in the national aeronautical research plan or the preparation of the annual R&D review in accordance with the government. performance reporting requirements. Additionally, the FAA has not addressed the reporting requirement to highlight R&D activities that meet Research Advisory Committee recommendations and to document non-accepted recommendations, including reasons for denial. Another example is describing new technologies developed and dissemination of research to the private sector in the annual R&D review, but the FAA has also not fully met this requirement. FAA officials told the GAO that they are revamping the National Aeronautical Research Plan and annual R&D review to comply with, among other things, legal reporting requirements. However, because the FAA was in the early stages of this effort, officials could not identify specific steps the agency planned to take to redesign the reports to meet the requirements. If the FAA fails to meet legal requirements for federal reporting and performance in the National Aeronautical Research Plan and Annual R&D Review, internal and external stakeholders will be deprived of the information they need to make decisions. knowledge or make recommendations on the FAA’s R&D budget or portfolio. Thus, the GAO recommended that the FAA develop guidance to ensure that future National Aeronautical Research Plans and annual R&D reviews meet regulatory requirements to the extent possible. In 2021, the GAO confirmed that the FAA had developed guidance and issued redesigned reports that addressed the reporting gaps that the GAO had identified. Specifically, the FAA has developed guidelines for the agency that outline how to meet statutory reporting requirements for the National Aeronautical Research Plan and Annual R&D Review, including the roles and responsibilities of research sponsors. research within the FAA. The agency released a revamped National Aerospace Research Plan in 2020 that fully addressed the reporting gaps the GAO had identified, such as outlining technology transfer efforts, long-term research priorities, and measurement. in which the agency had responded to the recommendations of the research advisory committee. Additionally, the FAA released a revamped Annual R&D Review in 2020 that addressed other deficiencies we had identified, including comparing research accomplishments to R&D goals identified in the National Aeronautical Research Plan. Thanks to these efforts, the FAA now meets legal reporting requirements, and Congress has the information it needs to identify how R&D funds are spent and how the public has benefited.
