SOURCES SOUGHT
F -- Next Generation Airtanker Services for the 2014 Fire Season
- Notice Date
- 4/22/2014
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 481212
— Nonscheduled Chartered Freight Air Transportation
- Contracting Office
- U.S. Forest Service, Contracting, Owyhee Building - MS 1100, 3833 S. Development Avenue, Boise, Idaho, 83705-5354, United States
- ZIP Code
- 83705-5354
- Solicitation Number
- SN-2014-03
- Archive Date
- 5/1/2014
- Point of Contact
- Tonya R. Rymer, Phone: (208) 387-5669
- E-Mail Address
-
trymer@fs.fed.us
(trymer@fs.fed.us)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Submittal of Information: The information requested by this Sources Sought shall be provided, in writing, by 2:30 pm Mountain Time on April 30, 2014 to the following address: Tonya Rymer U.S. Forest Service National Interagency Fire Center 3833 South Development Avenue Owyhee Building #106, Suite 1101-1 Boise, ID 83705-5354 Synopsis: This Sources Sought is for Market Research and Planning purposes only. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT ON THE BASIS OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT OR TO OTHERWISE PAY FOR THE INFORMATION SOLICITED. This Sources Sought does not constitute a solicitation for proposals or the authority to enter into negotiations to award a contract. No funds have been authorized, appropriated, or received for this contemplated effort. This Sources Sought is for market research purposes only and shall not be considered an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses to this Sources Sought or the Government's use of such information. The Government reserves the right to reject, in whole or in part, any contractor's input resulting from this Sources Sought. Responses to this Sources Sought will not be returned. Whatever information is provided in response to this Sources Sought may be used to assess the number of Large Airtankers that are not already under contract that would be available for the 2014 fire season. Any proprietary information that is submitted will be safeguarded providing it is marked in accordance with FAR 3.104-4. Description: The purpose of this announcement is to obtain information regarding interested contractors who are capable of providing a Next Generation Airtanker for operation during the 2014 fire season. This Sources Sought notice describes the desired characteristics of aircraft that are a focus of that interest. The aircraft would need to be readily available upon award for inspection and operation on July 1, 2014. Desired airtanker specification includes all of the following but is not limited by these elements. •Ability to respond without delay to initial attack and extended attack fires in the western states. •Capacity to carry and dispense 3000 to 5000 gallons of retardant into mountainous terrain. •A current Interagency Airtanker Board (IAB) approval will be in force prior to award and the approval shall have duration through the 2014 fire season. •The Company must hold both 14 CFR 137 and 14 CFR 145 certificates for operations with the aircraft offered included under those certificates. •Aircraft must hold an FAA type certificate (TC) for their design, and all applicable supplemental type certificates for dispensing operations. The FAA structural inspection programs, instructions for continued airworthiness, and airworthiness limitations section shall provide adjustments to each that accommodate operations in the airtanker role while dispensing retardant. •An operator owned and installed Operating Load Monitoring System (OLMS) that measures, records, and outputs data relevant to the loads placed on the structure in the airtanker environment must be in place. The data will be provided to FS in a nonproprietary format. •A comprehensive airworthiness program that accounts for the airtanker special mission use and ensures inspections occur to predict and prevent catastrophic fatigue failures. •The subject aircraft will be maintained in accordance with this airworthiness program, which shall be FAA approved and address the use as an airtanker. •All manuals, publications, directives, etc. shall be current for the aircraft in its intended use as an airtanker for dispensing retardant. •While operated as a public use aircraft operation, the company will be able to operate under 14 CFR 91 when on non-revenue flights. •Capability of flight at Flight Level 180 at speeds greater than 300 knots (KTAS) with contract load and fuel must be documented with performance charts. •The aircraft and the crew must be certified and capable of IFR operations. •Flight crews shall have a minimum of two years fire experience in the western US or documentation of holding a USFS/USDI interagency approval for the assigned flight stations and have shown aptitude to field conditions associated with aerial firefighting. •In addition to items installed for IFR operations, installed equipment will include an FM communications radio, a Traffic Avoidance System, and an Automated Flight Following System. Response Requirement: Interested offerors are asked to provide a brief response to this Sources Sought Notice of not more than ten (10) pages, excluding cover page, with the information detailed below by 2:30 pm Mountain Time on April 30, 2014: 1.Company name, company mailing address, and point of contact information. 2.Company's applicable socioeconomic status and available contract ordering vehicles (include contract numbers), if available. 3.Capabilities Statement that clearly aligns the capabilities of the company to the requirements contained above. Include a brief list of experience on similar service projects (comparable in type of services, size of program, and complexity); including client/project owner, name/title/phone number of a client point of contact, prime contractor name (if applicable), size of comparable contract, brief description, period of performance. 4.The FAA N Number, aircraft serial number, assigned tanker number, and the make and model of aircraft must be provided in your response. 5.Copies of FAA 14 CFR 137 and 14 CFR 145 certificates for operations with the aircraft offered included on those certificates. 6.Copy of current Interagency Airtanker Board (IAB) approval. 7.Airtanker information regarding flight profile from receipt of dispatch operating off of a 7,000 foot runway at sea level on a standard day to a fire that is 30 minutes away. The profile you submit will show information and time for start, taxi, takeoff, climb, cruise, altitude for cruise, and decent into the fire area arriving at 2500 feet MSL for the 30 minute flight from takeoff roll to the fire. 8.The aircraft will have been weighed within the last three years and a weight and balance for the aircraft for use as an airtanker with two and one half (2 ½ ) hours of fuel on board and the proposed retardant volume computed at 9 pounds per gallon must be provided in your response. 9.Any additional information which the company deems important and relevant to this notice.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/USDA/FS/024B/SN-2014-03/listing.html)
- Record
- SN03344766-W 20140424/140422234454-9defd64cc4911fd6d6216af355285d17 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |