D.4 University Leadership Initiative 2 (ULI2)

University Leadership Initiative (ULI) provides the opportunity for university teams to exercise technical and organizational leadership in proposing unique technical challenges in aeronautics, defining multi-disciplinary solutions, establishing peer review mechanisms, and applying innovative teaming strategies to strengthen the research impact.

Research proposals are sought in six ULI topic areas in Appendix D.4.

Topic 1: Safe, Efficient Growth in Global Operations (Strategic Thrust 1)

Topic 2: Innovation in Commercial High-Speed Aircraft (Strategic Thrust 2)

Topic 3: Ultra-Efficient Subsonic Transports (Strategic Thrust 3)

Topic 4: Safe, Quiet, and Affordable Vertical Lift Air Vehicles (Strategic Thrust 4)

Topic 5: In-Time System-Wide Safety Assurance (Strategic Thrust 5)

Topic 6: Assured Autonomy for Aviation Transformation (Strategic Thrust 6)

This NRA will utilize a two-step proposal submission and evaluation process. The initial step is a short mandatory Step-A proposal due June 26, 2025. Those offerors submitting the most highly rated Step-A proposals will be invited to submit a Step-B proposal. All proposals must be submitted electronically through NSPIRES at https://nspires.nasaprs.com.

An Applicant's Workshop will be held on Wednesday Apr 30, 2025; 1:00-3:00 p.m. ET (https://uli.arc.nasa.gov/applicants-workshops/workshop9).

An interested partners list for this ULI is at https://uli.arc.nasa.gov/partners. To be listed as an interested lead or partner, please send electronic mail to hq-univpartnerships@mail.nasa.gov with "ULI Partnerships" in the subject line and include the information required for the table in that web page.