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18 -- SERVICE LIFE EXTENSION PROGRAM (SLEP), - PHASE III Sol F04701-95-R-0030. Due 101595. POC Contract Negotiator, Alan R. Mak (310) 336-4735; Contracting Officer, Charles D. Watson (310) 336-4730. The Government anticipates the release of a sole-source Request for Proposal (RFP) for the modification of four Defense Satellite Communication System III (DSCS III) spacecraft, plus an option for the modification of a fifth DSCS III spacecraft acquired from Lockheed Martin Astro Space (LMAS). Two additional options will be included for a Low Noise Amplifier Upgrade and an Increased Bandwidth modification for said fifth satellite. The SLEP modification will include, at a minimum, the replacement of 40 Watt Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers (TWTAs) in Channels 1 & 2, the addition of Electrothermal Hydrazine Thrusters (EHTs) to augment and increase the efficiency of the DSCS III propulsion system, and the replacement of two inboard solar panels with high efficiency material. The first modified satellite must be ready to begin system-level launch readiness testing at the LMAS Valley Forge, PA, facility 15 months prior to launch. The launch is currently planned for not later than July 1999. The estimated period of performance for the entire modification program is five years starting in February 1996. The spacecraft are currently stored and monitored by LMAS at their Valley Forge facility. LMAS, the incumbent, will be required to submit a proposal no later than 60 days after publication of this notice. See Note 22. (233)

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