Crown Consulting Inc. has been awarded a NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) contract with Booz Allen Hamilton to expand into a rapidly emerging area of research: urban air mobility, or UAM.

The studies will define the UAM market, taking an objective look at the market potential of UAS to better understand the issues and gauge the speed with which it may develop.

They will spell out the policy, economic, social, environmental and legal barriers to enabling UAM and estimate how much potential demand there is for UAM now and in the future.

“The industry is working hard to develop these markets, but how long will it take? And how big are the challenges that must be overcome? The information they will gather will help us decide how quickly and how best to deploy our resources to help,” said Rich Wahls, NASA’s strategic technical advisor in the Advanced Air Vehicles Program for ARMD.

The UAM market studies will help NASA ensure it develops the most relevant and appropriate research agenda and pursues the right path to create high-impact industry partnerships.

“With UAM’s potential to make such a huge difference in all of our lives in the very near future, we want to be sure we’re investing in the best areas of research that will help industry to make this happen,” said Jaiwon Shin, NASA’s associate administrator for aeronautics.

About Crown

Crown Consulting Inc. is shaping the future of air transportation with concept development, design and deployment of systems and aircraft. We bring more than three decades of experience working with the Federal Aviation Administration, NASA, states and industry. Our science and researchprograms and engineering, and integration and infrastructure service areas integrate industry-leading air mobility technology and planning support, engineering, information solutions and advanced analytics that enhance system performance and provide robust air mobility solutions for government and industry clients. For more information, visit crownci.com.