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The NASA Langley Research Center is developing a set of Transport Research Facilities which will support a simulation-to-flight process that will improve the efficiency of conducting experiments from concept development, to ground-based simulation testing, to flight testing. A key facility is a modified B-757-200 airplane containing an onboard research system. This aircraft is replacing the existing NASA B-737-100 Transport Systems Research Vehicle. The other Transport Research Facilities include two simulator cabs, a Research System Integration Laboratory, and the associated software. These facilities will support research flight operations associated with the present and future air traffic control environments.

This paper provides information about the Advanced Transport Operating Systems Program at NASA Langley with emphasis given to the Transport Systems Research Vehicle (TSRV) used to conduct flight tests. The TSRV, which is the first production Boeing 737-100 built, has been heavily modified to accommodate a flight functional research flight deck within its main cabin. Discussed are the TRSV involvement with flight test development and demonstration of the the Time Reference Scanning Beam Microwave Landing System, 4-D Flight Management, ATC data link, and airborne windshear sensors. The TRSV's role in these programs provides examples of the influence of flight tests on the technical credibility of concepts intended to benefit aircraft/ATC integration.