GE Aviation, FAA research ATC

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and GE Aviation have signed a cooperative research and development agreement to study how manned and unmanned aircraft can share commercial airspace.

GE Aviation and the FAA will look at air traffic control systems that would allow commercial airliners operating under instrument rules to fly directly to their destinations. Currently, such aircraft fly a jagged route along designated airways that use ground-based radio beacons to guide them.