Naval Air Systems Command

The Department of the Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), a major command within the Department of Defense responsible for the procurement, modernization, and sustainment of naval aviation systems and aircraft, manages a portfolio of 281,656 federal contract awards totaling $1.028 trillion in combined potential value with $879.36 billion obligated across its operations since 1992. The command operates through multiple warfare centers and program offices including Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division at Patuxent River and Lakehurst, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division at China Lake, and dedicated program management offices for specific platforms such as Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, and Strike Fighters.

Contract activity over the last five years averaged 6,341 awards annually, declining to 2,840 awards in 2026 and 4 year-to-date through July 2027. The most recently recorded award date falls in July 2027, approximately eight months in the future. Competitive concentration among primes is highly fragmented by award count—the top five contractors hold only 8 percent of recent awards—though by potential value concentration is also highly fragmented at 8 percent. Leidos, Inc. leads by award count with 566 awards and $124.8 million combined potential value over the last five years, followed by Rockwell Collins, Inc. with 545 awards and $1.8 billion, and The Boeing Company with 462 awards and $7.69 billion. Lockheed Martin Corporation dominates by potential value with $69.69 billion across 259 awards. The contractor base spans 23,254 distinct primes across the portfolio history. The command awards no set-asides to 83 percent of contract actions; small-business set-asides (all designations combined) account for roughly 15 percent of awards, with 8(a) awards representing about 3 percent total. Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, HUBZone, Woman-Owned Small Business, and HBCU/MI designations collectively represent less than 1 percent of volume. Recent awards with no reported potential value appear substantially in the portfolio, reflecting heavy transactional activity through Schedule task orders, BPA calls, and modifications.

NAVAIR also manages a modest grant program of 83 total awards obligating $31.9 million in federal dollars since 2008, with recent activity at 3, 6, 9, 7, and 3 awards in 2022 through 2026. Grant recipient concentration is highly concentrated by award count—the top five recipients hold 67 percent of recent awards—though highly fragmented by federal dollars at 24 percent. University of Maryland, College Park leads by award count with 11 awards obligating $1.7 million federal dollars over the last five years; The Naval Aviation Museum Foundation, Inc. leads by federal dollars with $2.6 million across 2 awards. The grant portfolio is predominantly Cooperative Agreements at 65 percent of awards and Project Grants at 35 percent. Distinct grant recipients total 27 across portfolio history.

Recent contract opportunities span technical equipment procurement, aircraft modifications, engineering services, and sustainment support across Naval Air Warfare Center and NAVAIR program offices. Sole-source notices of intent predominate, including Datawell Buoy Services Renewal (pre-solicitation, due 27 October 2026 to University of California San Diego), Link 16 Handheld Radios & Accessories (pre-solicitation, due 27 October 2026 to L3Harris Technologies), and Keysight UXA Signal Analyzer (solicitation, due 28 October 2026). Forward-looking pre-solicitations signal future demand for Mode5/TCAS/Surveillance Cloaking integration at Patuxent River (sources sought through 5 November 2026), EMALS/AAG multi-engineering change proposals for carriers CVN-78 and CVN-79 under General Atomics basic ordering agreement (sources sought through 4 November 2026), and MQ-4C Triton engineering and sustainment IDIQ to Northrop Grumman (sources sought through 2 November 2026). Small-business set-asides appear in CH-53 Depot Level Aircraft Modifications (sources sought through 5 November 2026), Maintenance and Service for Deionized Water Systems (due 26 October 2026, sole source to American Plant Maintenance, LLC), and Engineering and Technical Services for Support Equipment at NAWCAD Lakehurst (due 3 December 2026). Grant opportunities are not present in the recent-opportunities block.