Next Generation Large Airtanker Services 3.0

The Department of Agriculture Forest Service Fire and Aviation Management National Interagency Fire Center awarded this master IDIQ for exclusive-use next-generation large airtanker services on March 17, 2021, with ordering closed on December 31, 2025. The vehicle is no longer active; the ordering period has expired, making this vehicle unsuitable for new pursuit.

For historical context: the vehicle executed 25 delivery orders over its five-year life, maintaining steady activity at five orders per year from 2021 through 2025. The combined potential value across all task orders reached $184.9 million, with $171.7 million obligated (93% of potential). Recent orders awarded through March 2025 carried firm fixed-price structures with completion dates extending into 2028, indicating multi-year performance cycles typical of airtanker services provisioning.

Competition concentrated among three primes holding equal prominence. Aero-Flite, Inc. and Aero Air, LLC each received ten orders valued at $78.5 million and $69.5 million combined potential respectively, splitting 68 percent of the vehicle's total value. Coulson Aviation (Usa), Inc. held the remaining five orders worth $36.9 million. All 25 task orders were issued as unrestricted (no set-aside) awards, despite the originating solicitation (12024B18R9013) advertising a total small business set-aside. Customer concentration was absolute: the National Interagency Fire Center placed all 25 orders against its own budget.

Task order values ranged from approximately $3.6 million to $9.7 million ceiling, with individual delivery orders typically committing aircraft and crew for exclusive use on named line items and tail numbers. Orders performed nationwide across the contiguous United States and Alaska, serving seasonal wildfire suppression demand June through October with renewal cycles aligned to annual fire seasons. Pricing reflected daily availability rates and hourly flight rates for multi-engine turbine-powered airtankers meeting Interagency Airtanker Board specifications for minimum retardant payloads of 3,000 to 5,000 gallons.