Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center of Excellence (UAS COE)

The Federal Aviation Administration awarded the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center of Excellence Master IDIQ on September 4, 2018, with ordering authority closed as of May 6, 2020. The vehicle is no longer accepting new orders.

This academic research-focused IDIQ has been substantially exhausted. Seven task orders totaling $5 million in combined potential value have been issued, with 100 percent of that value obligated. The most recent award occurred on September 19, 2024—a delivery order to Wichita State University for high-bypass turbofan UAS engine ingestion test analysis and documentation—but that order was placed under ordering authority that technically expired more than four years prior. All task orders have been structured cost-plus-no-fee arrangements with academic institutions as prime contractors.

Work performed spans UAS safety and airspace-integration research. Awarded task orders address airborne collision severity assessment, drone mitigation demonstration and testing, small UAS survey and registration data integration for risk forecasting, and turbofan engine ingestion testing. The vehicle has not pursued commercial vendor partnerships; all five prime contractors are universities: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University ($1.3 million), Mississippi State University ($1.2 million), University of North Dakota ($1.1 million), Wichita State University ($1.1 million), and University of Alabama in Huntsville ($324 thousand).

Ordering activity concentrates within FAA's regional and technical infrastructure. The FAA Southwestern Region placed three orders worth $2.6 million combined; the FAA Technical Center placed three orders worth $2.4 million; FAA Headquarters placed one order for $13 thousand. No small-business set-asides were applied across the portfolio.

Typical task-order values range from $12,500 for a single kickoff meeting through $1.25 million for multi-year research integration projects, with durations from one month to two years. Ordering momentum has been sparse—two orders in 2019, two in 2021, and two in 2024—and the expired ordering window precludes pursuit unless FAA recompetes or extends the vehicle.

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center of Excellence companion Master IDIQ