AoI 025_Immersive Training Governance Integration 060126.pdf

Area of Interest (AoI) 025: Immersive Training Governance & Integration

1. General Information

1.1 AoI Background

The Department of the Air Force depends on a coherent, scalable training enterprise to deliver mission-ready airmen and guardians across all MAJCOMs. Extended Reality (XR) training capabilities have been adopted across the Air Force in fragmented, non-interoperable forms, producing duplicative investment, loss of learner data at Permanent Change of Station (PCS), vendor lock-in, and an inability to deliver enterprise-scale immersive training coherence.

The House Armed Services Committee (HASC), through committee report language accompanying the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 119-60), directed the Secretary of the Air Force to provide a briefing on steps taken to establish an immersive learning capabilities platform. The briefing was required to address vendor lock prevention, establishment of a Digital Asset Repository, Program Objective Memorandum (POM) funding requirements, and acquisition milestones for the XR enterprise. The Air Force provided that briefing in February 2026.

The AF/A4L "Maintenance and Logistics Extended Reality (XR) Strategy," signed 13 May 2024, is the only signed XR strategy currently within the DAF. It is limited in scope to maintenance and sustainment training. Expanding the reach of that strategy to encompass all immersive training-related content and systems across the enterprise is among the objectives of this effort.

The Air Force Manpower, Personnel, and Services Directorate (AF/A1) is a key coordinating agency in this initiative. AF/A1 is leading the development of Human Data Standards, Competency Policy, and Talent Management frameworks that are integral to any enterprise immersive training solution. AF/A1 is also driving policy adoption of the Experience API (xAPI) standard as the government recommended approach for tagging and managing human data across the enterprise, including data generated by XR systems.

The xAPI standard enables data portability across vendors and repositories, supports competition, and prevents vendor lock-in.

The Chief Modeling and Simulation Office (CMSO), operating under SAF/SA, is the sponsoring and controlling organization for this enterprise capability and its associated contract vehicles. The Air Force Agency for Modeling and Simulation (AFAMS), operating subordinate to CMSO within the SAF/SA hierarchy, serves as the lead DAF agency for tactical Modeling and Simulation activities. In FY2026, AFAMS merged with the former SAF/SAM office under CMSO, expanding its execution capacity. While SAF/SA (CMSO/SAM) retains majority control, strategic governance authority, and ultimate contract ownership at the Secretariate or headquarters (you choice) level, AFAMS is designated as the primary execution arm and administrative contracting organization for this effort. The Air Education and Training Command (AETC) serves as a key coordinating agency. The Air Force requires analytical and implementation support to fulfill this CMSO-directed governance mandate on enterprise scale.

The Air Force Agency for Modeling and Simulation (AFAMS), operating under the Chief Modeling and Simulation Office (CMSO), serves as the lead DAF agency for all Modeling and Simulation activities, including strategic efforts to reduce costs, shorten schedules, and expand capabilities. In FY2026, AFAMS merged with the former SAF/SAM office under CMSO, expanding its governance, policy, and execution capacity with program execution assistance from AFRL. AFAMS has been identified as the Lead Agent for the immersive training Governance across the DAF and is the contracting organization for this effort. The Air Education and Training Command (AETC) serves as a key coordinating agency. The Air Force requires analytical and implementation support to fulfill this governance mandate at enterprise scale.

1.2 Problem Statement

The DAF immersive training landscape is fragmented across MAJCOMs with no enterprise governance structure. Multiple USAF organizations are independently funding and develop immersive training systems and content. Learner data is lost at PCS transitions. Investment is duplicated with no common architecture or interoperability standards. No department-wide immersive training strategy exists beyond the AF/A4L maintenance-scoped strategy, and no single organization has yet been resourced with the analytical support needed to bring coherence to the immersive training enterprise.

AFAMS, as the designated Lead Agent for immersive training Governance, requires the expertise, analytical capacity, and transition support necessary to fulfill that role: to characterize the current landscape, design governance and policy frameworks, prototype and validate solution approaches, and set the conditions for sustained enterprise implementation.

1.3 Objective

The Air Force Agency for Modeling and Simulation (AFAMS) seeks partners to develop the governance, analytical, technical, and transition capabilities needed to bring coherence to the immersive training landscape and to position the Department to fulfill its HASC-directed responsibilities for the enterprise. The Air Force is not prescribing a specific solution architecture in this Area of Interest. The Air Force seeks proposed approaches.

The Air Force seeks entities to conduct deliberate, innovative problem solving to address each of the following:

1. Examine the current fragmented immersive training landscape across MAJCOMs, identify obstacles to enterprise coherence, and propose organizational integration and resolution approaches.

2. Develop end-state visions and roadmaps for the establishment of an enterprise immersive training strategy across appropriate time horizons, including near-term deliverable, funded program, and mature enterprise.

3. Design a governance and policy framework that brings coherence to the enterprise immersive landscape while preserving the doctrinal roles and responsibilities of all participating entities.

4. Prototype and validate Return on Investment and operational outcome models.

5. Set the conditions for sustained implementation, including funding pathways, acquisition vehicles, and stakeholder coalition across the Air Force and Joint enterprise.

6. Engage non-traditional contractors, industry, and academia in a manner that reduces vendor lock-in risk over the life of the program while optimizing capability delivery and future enhancement.

One or more companies will be selected to provide the process and products to be delivered during the period of performance in order to: 1) examine, characterize, and provide an integrated strategy to optimize the fragmented immersive training landscape;

2) deliver governance, analytical, and transition artifacts that satisfy the intent of the HASC directive accompanying the FY2026 NDAA; and 3) measure and report operational outcomes including readiness and training continuity.

The objective is to deliver initial governance and analytical artifacts within 12 months of award, with full implementation conditions established by the FY28 POM cycle and sustainment thereafter.

2. AoI Constraints

The selected company or companies will be assigned an Air Force development project to advance the immersive training enterprise. Their solution shall describe the proposed approach.

1. Air Force subject matter experts (SMEs) will be available for consulting during the contract period.

2. Information will be made available to companies on identified immersive training requirements, current MAJCOM XR investments and capabilities, HASC directive reporting requirements, and relevant AFAMS and AETC guidance documents.

3. The Government strongly prefers a process that targets fielding governance and analytical capabilities within 12 to 18 months of contract award.

4. The Government requires a solution that meets the following elements:

a. Examine and understand the complex, multi-MAJCOM immersive training landscape to identify obstacles to enterprise coherence. Ensure a clear value proposition prior to execution.

b. Develop a vision for the immersive training enterprise end-state and a governance framework that enables synchronized innovation across MAJCOMs.

c. Design a deliberate transition path from the current fragmented state to the enterprise end-state, accommodating existing MAJCOM capability investments.

d. Execute prototyping and experimentation efforts to validate the proposed approach, measure initial Return on Investment, and reduce full implementation risks while maturing integration requirements.

e. Set the conditions for full implementation in a way that has measurable operational return, including readiness outcomes, training data persistence through PCS, and funding-cycle alignment.

f. Engage non-traditional contractors in a focused manner that facilitates communication among Government, Industry, and Academia in a way that is open, creative, and centered on the specific needs of the Air Force.

5. Pricing Strategy:

a. The contractor will be issued a firm-fixed price award.

6. Other:

a. Using the repeatable process, solution prototypes and experimentation campaigns will be developed and assessed for full implementation under the awarded contract.

i. Prototypes and experimentation campaigns that meet the needs of the Air Force will be selected for additional work and follow-on production contracts.

b. Performance dates:

i. Company 1: 1 September 2026 – 31 August 2031

ii. Anticipated period of performance: 5 years

iii. NOTE: Projected dates are dependent on the actual contract award date.

c. Location: Performance coordinated across AFAMS (Pentagon, Orlando, FL), AETC (Randolph AFB, TX), and HAF locations as required, with solution development performed at the company location.

d. Lodging and transportation: The Company will be responsible for all travel and lodging costs.

e. Security requirements: All projects, data, and discussions will be unclassified but will contain controlled unclassified information. Ensure all contractors working within the AOI are eligible and compliant with National Agency Check with Inquiries (NACI).

f. Platform environment and software applications must be compatible to operate within the FedRAMP Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 199, moderate impact level security requirements.

3. Submission Requirements

A written solution must be sent via email submission by 5:00 P.M. 06 July 2026 with subject line "IMMERSIVE TRAINING GOVERNANCE AND INTERGRATION" to the Contracting Officer, Margaret Santos at margaret.santos@us.af.mil and the Contracting Specialist, Timothy Prymak at timothy.prymak@us.af.mil. Solutions received after the specified due date and time will be discarded and not evaluated by the Government.

Submissions shall not exceed 10 pages white paper or 15 pages PowerPoint. Offerors may determine their own format. Classified materials and Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) are not accepted.

AoI Open Period: This AoI shall close at 5:00 P.M. 06 July 2026

Points of contact: AoI questions can be sent to:

Contracting Officer: Margaret Santos, margaret.santos@us.af.mil

Contracting Specialist: Timothy Prymak, timothy.prymak@us.af.mil

The Air Force intends to award RFO Part 12 contracts as a result of this CSO, but reserves the right to award agreements (e.g., Other Transaction Agreements), if deemed in its best interest. Companies are advised that any Prototype Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) awarded in response to this Area of Interest may result in the mailto:margaret.santos@us.af.mil mailto:margaret.santos@us.af.mil mailto:timothy.prymak@us.af.mil award of a follow-on production contract or transaction without the use of competitive procedures. The follow-on production contract or transaction will be available for use by one or more organizations in the Department of Defense, and as a result, the magnitude of the follow-on production contract or agreement could be significantly larger than that of the prototype OTA. As such, any Prototype Other Transaction Agreement will include the following statement relative to the potential for follow-on production: "In accordance with 10 U.S.C. 4022 (formerly 10 U.S.C.

2371b(f)), and upon a determination that the prototype project for this transaction has been successfully completed, this competitively awarded prototype OTA may result in the award of a follow-on production contract or transaction without the use of competitive procedures.