The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) wind tunnel and propulsion test facilities continue to be important to U.S. competitiveness across the military, commercial, and space sectors. Unfortunately, management issues are creating real risks to these facilities. This technical report supports a companion monograph (Wind Tunnel and Propulsion Test Facilities: An Assessment of NASA's Capabilities to Serve National Needs, MG-178-NASA/OSD), providing more detailed data, observations, and conclusions about the future of NASA's wind tunnel and propulsion test facilities.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) wind tunnel and propulsion test facilities continue to be important to U.S. competitiveness across the military, commercial, and space sectors. Unfortunately, management issues are creating real risks to these facilities. NASA needs to develop an aeronautics test technology vision and plan; analyze the viability of a national test facility plan; identify and maintain its minimum set of facilities; and identify financial shared support to keep its underutilized but essential facilities from entering financial collapse.

This monograph reveals and discusses the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) wind tunnel and propulsion test facility management issues that are creating real risks to the United States' competitive aeronautics advantage.