JA_AFSOC_Aircrew_Instruction_Support_Bridge_Redacted.pdf

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

SOURCE SELECTION SENSITIVE

March 2018 SOURCE SELECTION SENSITIVE Page 1 of 6

NOTE: If a Justification and Approval was approved for the preceding acquisition, a copy of the approved J&A for the predecessor action must be included in the staff package for approval of the instant J&A. This applies to all J&A staff packages that are submitted for review and approval at a level above the contracting officer. The predecessor J&A will be used as a reference document by the approving official.

Is this a new or amended J&A Document? New Amended ( Prior to Award Only! )

Is this a Bridge Action as defined in the AF Bridge Action Reduction Plan? Yes No

Funding level for this acquisition: < $700K > $700K and < $13.5M > $13.5M and < $93M > $93M

Contracting Activity: AFICC 765 SCONF

Purchase Request / Local ID Number: TBD

Program / Project (and PE, if applicable): Aircrew Instruction Support for 492 SOW

Program Type (PEO or Other Contracting): Other Contracting

Authority: 6.302-1 – 10 USC 2304(c)(1), Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements

Estimated Contract Cost (including options): J&A Type: Class Individual

COORDINATION (AFFARS 5306.304(a) )

Date

04 Jun 2019

Project Lead / Program Mgr / Requiring Activity

Signature

Date

04 Jun 2019

Contracting Officer/Chief of Contracting Office

11 Jun 2019

Local Legal Reviewer

14 Jun 2019

Director of Operations

APPROVAL (AFFARS 5306.304(a) )

Date

14 Jun 2019

Competition Advocate

March 2018 SOURCE SELECTION SENSITIVE Page 2 of 6

I. Contracting Activity.

Air Force Installation Contracting Center (AFICC) 765th Specialized Contracting Flight (765 SCONF) Hurlburt Field, FL 32544

II. Nature and/or description of the action being processed.

This individual Justification and Approval (J&A) is being processed for a firm-fixed priced contract for the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) Aircrew Instruction Instructor Support required by the 492 Special Operations Wing (SOW) and operational units. This contract constitutes a bridge action and will be processed in accordance with the AF Bridge Reduction Plan.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs.

AFSOC has a continuing need to provide critical Flying Training Unit (FTU) support. Support contractors provide instruction (platform, simulator and flight) to all students going through AFSOC's initial and mission qualification school. Continuation training for combat aircrews is also supported. Support areas include: fixed wing aircrew instruction, fixed wing flight instruction, remotely pilot aircraft (RPA) aircrew instruction, fixed wing simulator instruction, and weapon system leads for specific mission design series (MDS) aircraft or location. CV-22 and MC-130J instruction occurs within limited operational units: Hurlburt Field; Cannon AFB, NM; Yokota AB, JA; and RAF Mildenhall.

Aircrew Instructor Support is defined as customer-focused, aircrew and non-aircrew Academic, Simulator, Flight Line, Inflight Instruction, Observation Flights, aid and assistance to students, reporting, evaluating, grading, mission planning, mission pre-briefs, sortie executions and debriefs, post-mission documentation, remedial instruction, supplemental instruction, etc. as required by the published schedule, Syllabus, Instructor Guides, and Operational and Maintenance (O&M) Manuals. Specific tasks are detailed in the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

The current contract for AFSOC Aircrew Instruction Support was competed amongst eligible small business firms and was awarded on 23 Oct 2015 with a 12-month base period and two 12-month option periods. The awardee was Rockhill Group, Inc., a Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business concern, who has a record of successful performance since the award of this firm-fixed price contract.

Since the award of the current contract, AFSOC has experienced an influx in training requirements. The increase is attributed to the increase in FTEs from 95 when the contract was originally awarded to the 161 FTEs on contract currently. The Government estimates a need for 159 FTEs in the base year of the follow-on contract. In addition, the area of responsibility has expanded beyond Hurlburt Field, Cannon AFB, and Duke Field to include Yokota AB and Royal Air Force (RAF) Mildenhall. With the increase in training demand, projected increase in FTE's, and the expansion of operating locations at Yokota Air Base and RAF Mildenhall, the Government estimates the value of the follow-on three year effort to be , increase from the total value of the current contract.

Due to schedule delays on the acquisition of a follow-on contract, FA0021-16-C-0001 was extended 6 months IAW FAR 52.217-8 and expires on 30 June 2019. The re-compete was anticipated to conclude prior to the expiration of the 6-month extension, however due to conflicting AFSOC priorities and several high visibility contracts required by HQ AFSOC and other mission partners of the 765 SCONF, additional schedule delays have occurred and the follow-on effort is not expected to be awarded until the first quarter of 2019. A gap in service between the current contract and a follow-on competitive contract is not an option as the services performed on the AFSOC Aircrew Instruction Support contract are mission critical. In the absence of alternate courses of action, a bridge contract awarded to the incumbent contractor is necessary to provide continuity of service between the expiration of the current contract and the award of a follow-on contract.

The period of performance for the bridge contract will be 1 Jul 2019 to 1 Dec 2019, and will include 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services. The services required will be based on the current requirement, with minor modification to include additional performance locations. The required service is subject to a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and the Government intends to award the bridge contract using the rates paid on the current contract. The Government's estimate for the price of services is based on the following:

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Period Dates FTE's Obligation

Base Year 1 Jan 2016 - 31 Dec 2016 95

Option Year 1 1 Jan 2017 - 31 Dec 2017 125

Option Year 2 1 Jan 2018 - 31 Dec 2018 125

6-month Extension 1 Jan 2019 - 30 Jun 2019 161

Estimated Bridge Price 1 Jul 2019 - 31 Dec 2019 159

IV. Statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) implemented by FAR 6.302-1(a)(2)(iii)(B), which states that services may be deemed available only from the original source in the case of follow-on contract for continued provision of highly specialized services when it is likely that award to any other source would result in unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agency's requirements. FAR 6.302-1(b)(iii), "Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency's requirements", is applicable when there is a reasonable basis to conclude that the agency's minimum needs can only be satisfied by unique supplies or services available from a limited number of sources or a limited number of suppliers with unique capabilities.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

The incumbent contractor's unique qualifications that warrant the use of authority under FAR 6.302-1 are that they are the only contractor who can successfully continue services during the period of time between the expiration of the current contract and the award of the follow-on competed contract.

Success of AFSOC's mission is dependent on qualified aircrew instructor support to compliment the expertise available within the military and/or civilian workforce. Continuity of support is critical to keep AFSOC's FTUs operating and generating mission qualified aircrews for worldwide unit support with 159 FTEs, of which approximately 40% are flyers.

In order to perform successfully, a contractor must possess the capability to hire, maintain, and retain personnel with AFSOC/Special Operations Forces (SOF) experience in specified service categories. The Aircrew, Platform, and Simulator instructors are required to have a minimum of 5 years AFSOC aircrew experience. In addition, the Radio Operations Instructor is required to have a minimum of 10 years' experience operating radios utilized in AFSOC aircraft.

Training Integrators are required to have 10 years' experience, of which seven of those years must have employed AFSOC aircraft. Due to the nature of this requirement, and risk associated with contractor non-performance, no other contractor besides the incumbent is expected to be able to mobilize a qualified workforce in time for continuity of services.

Under the most favorable circumstances, the source selection process for a short-term competed action would take 120-days. A 30-day mobilization period would be required if award was made to any contractor other than the incumbent. Based on the critical nature of this service and the time remaining on the current contract, a bridge contract is the only option for continuity of services.

The current contract was awarded using a lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) source selection process in accordance with FAR 15, Contracting by Negotiation, as supplemented by the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), the Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (AFFARS), DoD Source Selection Procedures, Appendix A, 04 March 2011 and Air Force Mandatory Procedures 5315.3 dated 21 April 2014. Of the eleven

(11) proposals received, it was determined The Rockhill Group, Inc. provided the best value to the Government.

The Rockhill Group, Inc., has successfully performed services and has mitigated potential performance risks by recruiting, transitioning, obtaining appropriate security clearances, and retaining qualified employees. The Program Manager has cited the incumbent's performance for the past 3.5 years as exceptional.

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VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable.

In preparation for the acquisition of a follow-on competed contract, a Sources Sought Notice targeting small business concerns was posted on FedBizOpps on 26 Oct 2018, with a closing date of 8 Nov 2018, under NAICS Code 611512 (Flight Training) with a $27.5M size standard. The notice invited interested small business concerns to provide information about their company, capability statements, and to respond to seven (7) questions regarding solicitation requirements. The results of market research performed for the follow-on effort have been considered for this bridge action and are summarized in Sections VIII and X.

VII. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

An exception to the requirement for certified cost or pricing exists for this contract in accordance with FAR 15.403-1(b)

(1) which states that certified cost or pricing data is not required when the Contracting Office determines that the prices agreed upon are based on adequate price competition. The Government intends to award the bridge contract using rates comparable to those paid on the current contract, which was awarded as a result of adequate price competition. The required services are subject to Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) incorporated in the current contract for both Hurlburt Field, FL and Cannon AFB, NM. The current price has been determined fair and reasonable and any deviation in the offeror's proposed price from rates incorporated in the current contract will be negotiated in accordance with FAR 15.405.

VIII. Description of the market research conducted and the results, or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted.

Fifteen (15) vendors responded to a Sources Sought Synopsis posted on FedBizOpps in Oct 2018 expressing interest in the anticipated follow-on contract. Although offers were not solicited, a review of the interested vendors capability was conducted by the Program Manager whose initial determination was that the majority of interested vendors did not provide past performance references or capability statements that support a determination of sufficient competition amongst interested small businesses. Further further market analysis is being conducted to determine the final acquisition strategy.

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

None.

X. List of any sources that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

The fifteen (15) vendors who responded to the Oct 2018 Sources Sought Synopsis are as follows:

A. Harold + Associates, LLC (AHA, LLC)

A2M Aviation Solutions, LLC

Advanced Concepts and Technologies International, LLC (ACT I)

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B3H Corporation

Chenega Federal Systems, LLC

Delaware Resource Group of Oklahoma, LLC (DRG)

Engineering Support Personnel, Inc. (ESP)

Northington Consulting, LLC

Oscar Duece, LLC DBA ODL Services

Onvoi Global Services (OGS)

Pilot Express

System Dynamics International, Inc. (SDI)

The Rockhill Group, Inc. (TRG)

Vector Solutions, Inc.

The Government will comply with FAR 5.201(b)(1)(ii) by publicizing a notice of intent to grant a sole source bridge contract.

XI. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required.

The acquisition team is in process of developing the acquisition strategy for the follow-on contract. While not finalized, it is expected that a long term (3+ years, inclusive of option periods) contract will be competed. While a start

March 2018 SOURCE SELECTION SENSITIVE Page 6 of 6 date of 1 Jul 2019 is not feasible for this effort, an aggressive milestone plan has been established and the re-compete is being prioritized by the 765th SCONF and AFSOC.

In order to minimize the timelines associated with the competitive acquisition, the 765 SCONF has appointed a Contracting Officer for the bridge and a separate Contracting Officer for the follow-on requirement, allowing parallel (not sequential) execution of the requirements.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my (our) signature(s) above, I (we) certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my (our) responsibility, is both accurate and complete.