692M15-20-R-00028- Solicitation for Airport Operators Interested in Hosting FAA UAS Detection and Mitigation Research Program.pdf

Solicitation Number: 692M15-20-R-00028

Solicitation for Airport Operators Interest in Hosting Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA)

Airport Unmanned Aircraft System(s) (UAS) Detection and Mitigation Research Program

Solicitation:

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is seeking airport operators that are willing to host a portion of the FAA’s Airport Unmanned Aircraft System(s) (UAS) Detection and Mitigation Research Program, which will be carried out pursuant to Section 383 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-254, Oct. 5, 2018).

Background:

Consistent with Section 383 of the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-254, Oct. 5, 2018), Airport safety and airspace hazard mitigation and enforcement, the FAA is launching an effort to test and evaluate technologies/systems that detect and mitigate potential aviation safety risks posed by unmanned aircraft systems (UAS),1 hereafter referred to as the “Airport UAS Detection and Mitigation Research Program.”

Section 383(a) of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 created a new § 44810 in title 49 U.S.C.

Section 44810(a) requires the FAA Administrator to work with the Secretaries of Defense, Homeland Security, and the heads of other relevant federal departments and agencies to ensure that technologies/systems that are developed, tested, or deployed by federal departments and agencies to detect and/or mitigate potential risks posed by errant or hostile UAS operations do not adversely impact or interfere with safe airport operations, navigation, air traffic services, or the safe and efficient operation of the National Airspace System (NAS).

In addition, § 44810(b) requires the FAA to develop a plan for the certification, permitting, authorizing or allowing of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems in the NAS.

Section 44810(b) requires the FAA to take certain actions as part of or potentially informing the plan, including convening an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC). Further, § 44810(c) requires the FAA to test and evaluate technologies/systems that detect and/or mitigate risks posed by UAS at five airports and § 44810(d) directs the FAA to use detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems to detect and/or mitigate the unauthorized operation of an unmanned aircraft that poses a risk to aviation safety in the course of the required testing and evaluation.2 The Atlantic City International Airport (KACY)3 has been chosen as the first of the five airports for an extensive preliminary evaluation of all technologies/systems to be selected by the FAA based on broad agency announcement (BAA) 692M15-20-R-00004. The FAA is seeking, in this

1 See 49 U.S.C. § 44801(12) for definition of UAS.

2 The FAA was expressly excepted from various federal laws that would otherwise present legal implications associated with UAS detection and mitigation activities. See § 44810(g). The authority conferred in § 44810(g) is limited to the testing and evaluation of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems by the FAA at five airports. This authority cannot be delegated.

3 ‘K’ indicates the ICAO airport code or location indicator for United States Airports solicitation, four (4) additional eligible airport operators to host additional FAA testing and evaluation activities.

Purpose:

The FAA has been directed by Congress to test and evaluate technologies/systems that detect and/or mitigate aviation safety risks posed by UAS at five airports in the United States, including 1 airport that ranks in the top 10 of the FAA's most recent Passenger Boarding Data. See 49 U.S.C. §§ 44801(12) and 44810(c). For purposes of this research program:

1) a UAS detection system refers to a system or device capable of lawfully and safely detecting, identifying, monitoring, or tracking an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system. UAS detection systems may be integrated into or be linked to counter-UAS4 systems, but, themselves, do not provide the capability to disable, disrupt, seize control, or otherwise directly interfere with UAS operations.

2) mitigation refers to actions taken to deter, prevent, respond to, and minimize the immediate consequences of safety and security threats posed by certain UAS operations.

Mitigation may be conducted using counter-UAS and UAS detection systems, or by using other means, including efforts not reliant on these technical systems.

This solicitation invites submissions from eligible airport operators to host a portion of the FAA’s testing and evaluation effort under § 44810(c)-(d). All testing of selected technologies and systems will be conducted by FAA personnel only; airport personnel and others will be prohibited from operating technologies/systems. The FAA’s testing and evaluation effort will consist of two phases.

• Phase 1 is being conducted in a controlled environment at KACY, in which environmental impacts, electronic interference, and other factors can be closely monitored and accounted for, in the testing and evaluating to generate baseline performance data for these types of technologies/systems. KACY is collocated with FAA’s William J. Hughes Technical Center, which will enable FAA to closely monitor potential interference issues against numerous air traffic navigation, surveillance and weather systems that are currently deployed at the William J. Hughes Technical Center.

• As part of Phase 2 for this effort, the FAA is seeking four (4) eligible airport operators that will allow the FAA to safely install, test, and evaluate various types of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems at their airport. One of the selected airports must rank in the top 10 of the FAA’s most recent Passenger Boarding Data.5 This will allow the FAA to validate data collected at KACY during Phase 1, and also afford the FAA the opportunity to collect vital data in four additional unique operational airport environments.

4 See 49 U.S.C. § 44801(5) for definition of counter-UAS.

5 Hyperlink: FAA Passenger Boarding (Enplanement) and All-Cargo Data for U.S. Airports https://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/passenger_allcargo_stats/passenger/?year=all%20

The purpose of this solicitation is to request information from airport operators interested in hosting Phase 2 of the FAA’s test and evaluation effort.

Specific requirements on how to respond to this solicitation are described in the subsequent sections. The data and information collected by the FAA from this test and evaluation effort will be used to inform additional activities required under section 44810(b), including the development of a plan regarding the certification, permitting, authorizing, or allowing of the deployment of technologies/systems for the detection and mitigation of UAS, and convening an ARC to make recommendations for the plan.

Research Approach:

The FAA intends to evaluate at least 10 technologies/systems that have the ability to detect and/or mitigate UAS in a civil airport environment. Systems that may incorporate several different types of technologies will be counted as one technology/system. The FAA, when possible, will evaluate each technology separately, and collectively as a system.

The FAA will be coordinating and conducting the test and evaluation of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems in two phases. In Phase 1, the FAA will initially be testing and evaluating different technologies/systems to develop baseline information at KACY, collocated with the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center. Upon completion of the test and evaluation of the technologies/systems at KACY, the FAA then anticipates that each technology/system will initially be installed at one additional airport in the United States to further test and evaluate the technologies/ systems in unique airport environments, and validate the data collected at KACY.

In Phase 2, the FAA will use the baseline performance data collected during Phase 1 to help determine whether and to what extent other airport variables (geography, noise, interference, proximity to metropolitan areas, airport infrastructure, etc.) impact the performance of each technology/system. In coordination with airport operators and stakeholders, the FAA will conduct routine UAS operations to test and evaluate the performance of the UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems deployed by the FAA.

The FAA will develop a series of “test cards” customized to each specific airport that will contain details on the specifics of the UAS flights that will be conducted. The FAA plans to execute these test cards on a monthly basis throughout the duration of the test and evaluation effort. During either phase, the FAA will also use detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems to detect and/or mitigate the unauthorized operation of any unmanned aircraft that poses a risk to aviation safety in the course of the required testing and evaluation.

The FAA may deploy technologies/systems on a rotational basis at the airport. The total estimated period of time that an airport operator could be involved in this test and evaluation activity may be up to 24 months (2 years), and is expected to begin in early 2021. The FAA will be deploying technologies/systems on a staggered schedule as test and evaluation activities for each technology/system concludes at KACY. The first initial deployment could be as early as January 2021, with later deployments happening closer to the end of 2021. Participating airport operators, through an agreement with the FAA, will be required to provide their full support to enable the FAA to conduct the Agency’s test and evaluation effort, to include airport access, support the FAA in positioning equipment, identifying power and communication sources, providing equipment and operators, support personnel, etc. for the full duration of the effort. The airport operator is not permitted to operate the detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems, or the unmanned aircraft. The FAA may conduct coincident test and evaluation activities at the four selected airports.

Transition from KACY to the one additional airport will be based on the successful “graduation” of any selected offeror’s technology/system from KACY, meaning that the technology/system performed as advertised, generated reliable and accurate data, and warrants further evaluation in another operational setting. Testing may be discontinued if any technology/system does not perform as advertised or if, in Phase 2, the technology or system is unable to duplicate the detection distances identified previously at KACY.

The FAA reserves the right to pre-test mitigation technologies/systems in a controlled setting before introducing any system/technology into any airport environment, including KACY, for operational testing. The selection of any offered system/technology for FAA’s research program may be denied, and testing of any selected mitigation systems/technologies may be discontinued at any stage, due to the identification of unacceptable adverse impacts or interference caused by the system/technology to safe airport operations, navigation, air traffic services, or the safe and efficient operation of the NAS.

Submission Requirements:

Responses to this solicitation reflect an expression of interest only and do not commit the FAA or the airport operator. The FAA will not pay for any information received or costs incurred in preparing responses to this solicitation. Therefore, any cost associated with the solicitation is solely at the interested airport operator’s expense.

Interested airport operators must fully complete the Technical Screen provided in Appendix A of this document. The Technical Screen has two sections (Section 1A and Section 1B). Section 1A contains information on several factors that must be met in order for an airport operator to be eligible to participate in this program; FAA requirements that the airport operator must be willing to meet; and questions related to general airport characteristics, UAS activity, airport operations, security, military presence, critical infrastructure, and proximity to large public venues. Section 1B provides the opportunity for the airport operator to submit a written narrative, or provide supplemental information regarding why their airport is an ideal host to enable the FAA to conduct test and evaluation of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems. Submission of Section 1B is not required; albeit a completed Section 1B may weigh more favorable for selection. Submissions for Section 1A must not exceed 10 pages in total, and Section 1B must not exceed 5 pages in total, must be single spaced and single sided, and must use no smaller than a size 12 font. Submissions must be provided in Microsoft Word or Portable Document Format (PDF) format.

Based on the information provided under this solicitation, the FAA anticipates selecting four (4) airport operators.6 Each selected airport operator will be required to enter into a Firm-Fixed- Price Agreement with the FAA. As part of the Firm-Fixed-Price Agreement, the FAA will offer a stipend of $100,000 to the airport operator to offset the cost of their involvement and incurred expenses supporting this effort. The airport operator will receive a stipend of $50,000 at the beginning of the effort, and then receive a second stipend of $50,000 after successful completion of twelve (12) months of test and evaluation activities. Details on the stipend and the schedule of payments will be provided in the Firm-Fixed-Price Agreement.

The FAA will only evaluate submissions that the Agency receives before the posted deadline.

The FAA will consider submissions with no errors or omissions. The FAA will select the four

(4) airports after it has completed an technical evaluation of all submissions received. The FAA will carefully evaluate each submission to determine the airport operator’s ability to meet the requirements of the test and evaluation effort. Airport operator concurrence and compliance with the requirements listed in Section 1A (Appendix A) is required for participation in the UAS Detection and/or Mitigation Research Program. The FAA will be considering several factors for selection. The FAA will be looking for the following differentiators that ensure a robust research environment and diverse sampling:

• A diverse sample of geographical locations providing comparative variability (e.g.

topography, proximal obstructions, locality and proximity to other test locations, etc.);

• Air traffic operations volume and complexity;

• Ability of FAA to ensure that the systems/technologies to be tested and evaluated do not adversely impact or interfere with safe airport operations, navigation, air traffic services, or the safe and efficient operation of the National Airspace System (NAS);

• Airfield, airport and airspace infrastructures including airport complexities (e.g. airfield construction);

• Diverse sample of environmental factors providing comparative variability (e.g. weather, climate, atmospheric conditions, visual noise such as birds, airborne particulates, precipitation);

• FAA Air Traffic operational resources available to support testing activities that will be evaluated at each site;

• Assessment of various spectrum-engineering conflicts that could affect NAS systems including but not limited to – airframes and FAA communication, navigation, and surveillance systems;

• Operational and logistical resources to support testing activities;

• Suitability for FAA UAS operations for testing (e.g. launch and recovery capability, operator line-of-sight, etc.);

• Community, society, airport stakeholders and population density considerations.

6 The FAA’s authority to engage in this research program notwithstanding certain otherwise applicable federal laws is limited to testing at 5 airports; the FAA is limited by the authority in 49 U.S.C. 44810 and will not select more than 4 airports (in addition to KACY) to host this research.

The four selected airport operators’ properties must be at least 2,300 acres, which is the same size of the property the FAA intends to use for testing and evaluation as part of Phase 1 at KACY. The requirements for size ensure that the same number of sensors and their associated coverage areas from KACY can be replicated. The FAA expects the UAS detection technologies to cover 2,300 acres of the selected airport operator’s Air Operations Area (AOA)7 and as much surrounding area as possible with a general goal of reaching approximately 5 miles out from the center point of the AOA. The FAA expects the mitigation technologies to protect the AOA.

The FAA may deploy technologies/systems that consist of single sensors, or of multiple sensors that may be positioned or deployed at numerous locations on the airport operator’s property. The FAA will consider airports with similar sized properties to that of KACY, and those with larger properties that could potentially accommodate multiple different technologies/systems at one time. The FAA also may consider those airport operators with less than 2,300 acres if the airport operator is able to demonstrate that additional airport operator-owned or leased property outside the immediate airport perimeter fence is available, with appropriate access to power and line of sight to the airport, for installation of sensors. This property can be included in calculations to meet the 2,300-acre requirement.

The FAA reserves the right to conduct a site visit(s) to all, some, or none of the airport operators responding to this solicitation, to evaluate and/or verify available property and resources, or to verify the elements in the airport operator’s submission. The FAA reserves the right to inspect the proposed site, including supporting infrastructure and testing environment, to determine suitability for testing. In addition, the FAA may contact key personnel for clarification on any submissions. The FAA may also ask for additional documentation to help understand, clarify, or validate responses to this solicitation.

How to Respond to this Solicitation:

Interested airport operators must submit their responses and documents electronically. Also, please note that the FAA restricts file sizes to 10 MB; hence, if necessary, responses may have to be submitted in more than one e-mail to be received. Electronic submission files should utilize the following naming convention for all files: “{Announcement Number} {International Civil Aviation Organization Airport Code} UAS HOST AIRPORT RESPONSE {File Name either “1A” or “1B”}”. As an example, an acceptable naming convention for a file would be “2020-

12345-A_KACY_UAS HOST AIRPORT RESPONSE_ 1A”.

Interested airport operators must ensure that the FAA receives their responses to this solicitation no later than 5:00 P.M. EST, October 22, 2020. Please include the announcement number, ICAO Airport Code, and “UAS HOST AIRPORT RESPONSE”, as described above, in the subject line of your e-mail (e.g. SUBJECT: “2020-12345-A_KACY_UAS HOST AIRPORT RESPONSE”. A technical review team comprised of federal government and contract personnel will review the responses.

Interested airport operators are advised that employees of the firm identified below will assist FAA personnel in the selection process. These individuals will be authorized access to only those

7 See 14 C.F.R. § 153.3 for definition of air operations area.

portions of submissions provided by interested airport operators, as well as discussions that are necessary to enable them to perform their respective duties.

General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) 600 Aviation Research Blvd.

Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234

The FAA will not publicly disclose respondents’ proprietary information. Proprietary and export-controlled information must be marked appropriately in your response. Information identified by a Respondent as "Proprietary or Confidential" will be kept confidential to the full extent that it is protected pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and other laws and regulations.

THE FAA PREFERS THAT ALL QUESTIONS BE IN WRITING, VIA E-MAIL, TO THE

CONTRACTING OFFICER. CONTACT INFORMATION IS PROVIDED BELOW.

Submissions should be sent via e-mail to the following points of contact: Harry.Lutz@faa.gov and Karen.C.Thorngren@faa.gov.

LOCAL FAA OFFICES MUST NOT BE CONTACTED, RESOURCES WILL BE

EVALUATED AND DETERMINED AT AN FAA HEADQUARTERS LEVEL.

Appendix A

Section 1A - Technical Screen / Questionnaire:

Mandatory Factors: Airport operators must comply with the five factors identified below to be eligible. In addition to these factors, a prerequisite to the FAA’s selection of any airport under this solicitation is the FAA’s ability to mitigate any secondary effects of the technologies/systems selected for testing on the safety and efficiency of the NAS in a particular airport environment, to include protection of persons and property on ground. If the airport is unable to comply with any of the following five factors, the airport operator will be determined ineligible for award.

1. Your airport must be willing to host a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) test and evaluation effort of unmanned aircraft system (UAS) detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems for a period of up to 2 years, starting in 2021 and ending no later than the spring of 2023.

2. Your airport operator must be willing to enter into a Firm-Fixed-Price Agreement with the

FAA for this effort. As part of the Firm-Fixed-Price Agreement, the FAA will offer a stipend of $100,000 to the airport operator to offset the cost of their involvement and incurred expenses supporting this effort. The airport operator will receive a stipend of $50,000 at the beginning of the effort, and then receive a second stipend of $50,000 after successful completion of twelve (12) months of test and evaluation.

3. Your airport must be in compliance with applicable federal law, including FAA regulations and grant assurances, and not subject to any FAA investigations regarding compliance with federal law, including FAA regulations and grant assurances.

mailto:Harry.Lutz@faa.gov mailto:Karen.C.Thorngren@faa.gov

4. Your airport must have at least 2,300 acres of airport-owned or leased property available for use as a test area to install technologies/systems.8

5. Your airport operator must be willing to enter into additional agreements, as appropriate, with the air traffic facilities of impact with terms and conditions as determined by FAA Headquarters.

The airport operator must understand and accept the above factors. If the airport operator answers YES to all five factors, the airport operator may proceed with the completion of Section 1A – Technical Screen / Questionnaire. The airport operator must include the submitter’s contact information (name, positions, and contact information), answer all questions provided in this Appendix A, and follow all instructions for properly submitting the information to the FAA set forth in the solicitation. The submitter will serve as the point of contact for any future correspondence. If the airport operator is unable to answer YES to any of the above five factors, DO NOT SUBMIT a response. As a reminder, this solicitation is ONLY for airport operators, and is not intended for vendors or commercial interests.

Submissions for this Section 1A, in its entirety, must not exceed 10 pages, and must be single spaced, single sided, and use a 12 point font. Submission content beyond 10 pages will not be reviewed/evaluated.

FAA Operational Suitability Requirements for an Airport Operator Host: The airport operator must be willing to work in a collaborative relationship with FAA’s Office of Airports, Airport Technology Research and Development Branch, collaborators, and stakeholders to accomplish the goals and objectives of the technology assessment and validation effort. The FAA has established the following list of requirements that a host airport operator must adhere

to. The FAA will assess the airport operator’s responses to these requirements during the selection process. The FAA will use the information provided in response to the requirements set forth below in its determination of operational suitability for UAS detection and mitigation testing and evaluation.

The airport operator must provide responses addressing their ability to meet the following requirements:

• Permit UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems at their airport for the purpose of the FAA test and evaluation effort;

• Permit UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems to be deployed on a rotational basis and/or simultaneously, as determined by the FAA. (The FAA projects this number to be no more than three technologies at the same time);

• Provide a shipping/receiving location for equipment;

8 Airport operators with less than 2,300 acres may include available airport operator-owned or leased property outside the immediate airport perimeter fence, in order to meet the 2,300 acre requirement, provided the additional property offers appropriate access to power and line of sight to the airport, for installation of sensors.

• Provide a secured (i.e. safe and access limited) storage area for vendor equipment when initially receiving items;

• Provide access to power, telecommunications, network, wireless services, and other installation methods as needed for the detection equipment and sensors;

• Provide airport equipment/operators (e.g. fork trucks, pickup trucks, vans, man lifts, service vehicles, generators, airport staff, or other appropriate equipment.) as needed by the FAA to support installation/removal activities. Specific requirements are evolving and dependent upon the UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems selected by the FAA for the research program;

• Provide areas for deployment for detection and/or mitigation equipment and/or sensors, potentially on airport owned or leased antenna towers, buildings, hangars, garages (this information may be provided on a map, diagram, or KMZ (Google Earth) electronic file.). If appropriate, the FAA will provide access to FAA owned equipment and facilities located at the airport;

• Provide access badges or escorts, as appropriate, to FAA and other U.S. government personnel needing access to the airport in connection with the research program, as required;

• Host meetings, gatherings, events, very important personnel visits, other U.S. government agencies, and stakeholders on occasion for briefings, testing, and demonstrations of the detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems;

• Act as primary liaison with tenants and local stakeholders;

• Airport operator must participate in regular meetings and/or conference calls with the

FAA to discuss the status of the project. Participants in these meetings may include, but not be limited to: airport operations, air traffic services, Transportation Security Administration officials, local law enforcement, and other key stakeholders;

o This will require the airport operator to participate in telecoms on a scheduled and sometimes unscheduled basis. Initially the telecoms are expected to be every other week, and then shift to weekly as installation/testing gets closer;

• The airport must facilitate discussions with local communities of interest to identify suitable UAS flight operations areas for FAA testing and evaluation;

• Provide a secured area/facility/room suitable for housing equipment/control console for the detection and mitigation technologies/systems(s);

• The airport operator may need to coordinate with the FAA for public awareness/notifications around the airport about UAS operations and other detection and/or mitigation activities. This may include, but is not limited to: Education, Press, Social Media, local law enforcement, or outreach to other local stakeholders;

• The airport operator must be in compliance with applicable federal law, including FAA regulations and grant assurances, and not subject to any FAA investigations regarding compliance with federal law, including FAA regulations and grant assurances;

• Airport personnel are prohibited from operating the systems/technologies selected for the research program; and

• The airport operator will not have direct access to the data produced by the technologies/systems. The Government will retain unlimited rights to all data collected during this effort.

General Airport Characteristics: The FAA is interested in information about the airport property to enable FAA to better understand the proposed test environment. All questions must be answered. The information that the FAA seeks with the questions below is for general informational purposes, in order to assist the FAA with its determination of airport suitability for operational test and evaluation. However, as the responses of competing airport operators for the Mandatory Factors and Operational Suitability Requirements identified in this solicitation approach equal, the information provided in this Section of the solicitation may become a discriminator. Please provide the following requested information:

1. What is the name of the airport and who is the airport operator?

2. Is your airport operations managed by a third-party airport management service? If yes, what is their name?

3. What is the approximate size (in square acres or square miles) of the airport property owned/leased and/or managed by the airport operator?

4. Does the airport own additional property outside the primary airport up to 7 miles away to support test flights?

a. If so, please generally describe their locations and size.

5. What is the approximate size of the air operations area (AOA) in square acres or square miles?

6. Describe any unique features or operational peculiarities about the airport and its overall operation (e.g. flying clubs, heavy helicopter traffic, authorized UAS (drone) activity, or glider activity, procedures, current/planned construction).

7. Does the airport separate its operations into different complexes or traffic flows (Such as North/South or East/West)?

8. Does your airport have elevated grounds, buildings, roofs, or infrastructure that may be available to install or position equipment or components of UAS detection and mitigation technologies/systems(s)?

a. If so, please provide information, and supplemental information of these sites such as maps and/or map overlays and availability of power. Information may be provided on a map, diagram, or KMZ (Google Earth) electronic file.

9. Does your airport have any airport surface detection equipment, radar facilities, weather systems, communication systems, non-FAA emissions devices, or other NAS related systems at your airport (not employed for UAS detection)?

a. If so, please list and provide versions of FAA technology, if possible.

b. If so, please list and provide versions of non-FAA technology, if possible.

10. Airspace

a. What Classes of Airspace is your airport in?

b. Is your airport located within any Special Use Airspace, including Prohibited

Airspace, Restricted Airspace, Warning Areas, Military Operations Areas, Alert Areas, Controlled Firing Areas, National Security Areas, or special areas, such as the Special Flight Rule Areas or Flight Restricted Zone?

c. If so, what type, name, and where?

d. Is your airport air traffic operation effected by any Special Use Airspace, including Prohibited Airspace, Restricted Airspace, Warning Areas, Military Operations Areas, Alert Areas, Controlled Firing Areas, National Security Areas, or special areas, such as the Special Flight Rule Areas or Flight Restricted Zone?

e. If so, how and what type, name and location?

UAS Activity: The FAA is interested in information about UAS activity at the airport, including the use of UAS or the use of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems within the local airport environment. This includes activity conducted by the airport itself, contractors, tenants, military or other entities. The information that the FAA seeks with the questions below is for general informational purposes, in order to assist the FAA with its determination of airport suitability for operational test and evaluation. However, as the responses of competing airport operators for the Mandatory Factors and Operational Suitability Requirements identified in this solicitation approach equal, the information provided in this Section of the solicitation may become a discriminator. Please provide the following requested information.

1. Is your airport aware of any UAS detection technologies/systems installed or in use within a 60 mile radius of your airport?

2. Does your airport have plans to install, have installed, or otherwise operate a UAS detection technologies/systems at the airport for the duration of the test and evaluation program through the spring of 2023? Note: The FAA has concern that existing UAS detection technologies/systems located at the airport could lead to potential conflicts with new technologies that may be deployed under this effort. Potential conflicts include interference with each other, questions about data integrity, ‘comparison’ of technologies, etc. which are all areas of concern. If yes, provide:

a. the vendor(s) name and system type; and

b. a plan to address FAA’s concerns.

3. Has your airport experienced or been notified of any unauthorized UAS activity at or near your airport (e.g. pilot report, visual, phone call, etc.)?

a. Please list occurrences, dates, location distance from airport, describe occurrences, the type of response, and outcomes (within the last twelve months).

4. Do you currently conduct UAS airport related applications at your airport?

5. Do you have any tenants or others that operate UAS at your airport?

Airport Operations and Security: The FAA is interested in information about the airport operations and security departments at the airport. This information will assist FAA to better understand the availability of airport, air traffic, and security personnel to support the research program and the dynamics involved in coordinating execution of the research program. The information that the FAA seeks with the questions below is for general informational purposes to assist the FAA’s determination of airport suitability for operational testing and evaluation.

However, if the responses of competing airport operators for the Mandatory Factors and Operational Suitability Requirements identified in this solicitation approach equal, the information provided in this Section of the solicitation may become a discriminator. Please provide the following requested information.

1. Is the airport operations department staffed at the airport 24 hours/7 days a week?

2. Does your airport have an air traffic control tower (ATCT)?

a. Is the ATCT staffed 24 hours/7 days a week?

b. Is the ATCT a contract tower?

3. Can you describe the airport’s working relationship with local air traffic, if or if not a contract tower?

4. Who provides your local airport law enforcement?

5. Who provides your local airport perimeter security?

6. Does your airport operate any other AOA safety technologies/systems (e.g. foreign object debris detection, avian radar, etc.)?

Military Presence: The FAA is interested in information about the presence of military activity at or near the airport. This includes information on military tenants at the airport, whether or not the airport is “Joint Use”, or military operations within 10 miles of the airport. The information that the FAA seeks with the questions below is for general informational purposes to assist FAA’s understanding of the operating environment present at the airport, and to assist the FAA in assessing the necessary coordination that may be needed to execute the research program.

However, if the responses of competing airport operators for the Mandatory Factors and Operational Suitability Requirements identified in this solicitation approach equal, the information provided in this Section of the solicitation may become a discriminator. All questions must be answered. Please provide the following requested information.

1. Does the airport have military bases/presence/infrastructure on the airport property?

a. Type(s) & Name(s)

2. Does the airport have military bases/presence/infrastructure within 10 miles of the airport?

a. Type(s), Name(s) & Distance(s) from airport

3. Does your airport frequently coordinate with military operations?

Critical Infrastructure: The FAA is interested in specific information about the presence of critical infrastructure on or near the airport. This includes information on facilities or areas within 10 miles of the airport that have been deemed as a “critical infrastructure.” Presidential Policy Directive 21 (PPD-21): PPD-219 identifies “16 critical infrastructure sectors whose assets, systems, and networks, whether physical or virtual, are considered so vital to the United States that their incapacitation or destruction would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination thereof.”

This information will assist FAA to better understand the operating environment present at the airport, and provide insight on other potential government agencies that may require coordination with to properly execute this research program. All questions must be answered.

The FAA is interested in specific information about the presence of large public venues, as part of the critical infrastructure that may be located on or near the airport. The Commercial Facilities Sector, which is identified as one of the 16 sections under PPD-21, includes a diverse range of sites that draw large crowds of people for shopping, business, entertainment, or lodging.

Facilities within the sector operate on the principle of open public access, meaning that the general public can move freely without the deterrent of highly visible security barriers. The majority of these facilities are privately owned and operated, with minimal interaction with the

9 https://www.cisa.gov/critical-infrastructure-sectors https://www.cisa.gov/critical-infrastructure-sectors federal government and other regulatory entities. Within the Commercial Facilities Sector, the FAA is particularly interested in three specific subsectors. They are:

• Outdoor Events (e.g., theme and amusement parks, fairs, campgrounds, parades);

• Public Assembly (e.g., arenas, stadiums, aquariums, zoos, museums, convention centers);

• Sports Leagues (e.g., professional sports leagues and federations).

Information on critical infrastructure will assist FAA to better understand the operating environment present around the airport, provide insight on potential coordination that may be required other potential government agencies for flying UAS targets. This also provides information on potential sources of RF interference that is typically associated with large congregations of people. All questions must be answered. The answers to each question below will be assigned equal weight during the selection process. However, as the responses of competing airport operators for the Mandatory Factors and Operational Suitability Requirements identified in this solicitation approach equal, the information provided in this Section of the solicitation may become a discriminator. Please provide the following requested information.

1. Does the airport operator host any large, special events on the airport property?

a. If so, please describe the event types, locations, and any relevant event dates, if appropriate.

2. Does the airport have critical infrastructure that meet the criteria of the Outdoor Event, Public Assembly, or Sports Leagues Subsectors within 10 miles of the airport?

3. If so, please provide the type(s), names(s), and approximate distance(s) from the airport.

Section 1B – Summary Narrative or Supplemental Information:

Interested airport operators may provide a written narrative or supplemental information on why your airport would be an ideal host to enable the FAA to conduct their test and evaluation of UAS detection and/or mitigation technologies/systems. Submissions for this Section 1B must not exceed 5 pages, and must be single spaced, single sided, and use a 12 point font. Submission content beyond 5 pages will not be reviewed/evaluated.