Questions.pdf

Questions:

1. SF-1449, Amendments. The only published Amendments on fbo.gov are #0001, #0003 and

#0004. Can you advise if there is a #0002 or if this was a clerical error?

There is not a #0002.

2. PWS, Section 1.8. Once an order for flight hours has been placed by the Government, will the

Government prorate the maximum hours for any pricing band it orders over the CLIN period? Please clarify proper billing procedure.

For example: The Government initially orders 2500 hours against CLIN 1001. The contractor’s

2500 hour price band is $800/hour, which would total $2,000,000. The Government would prorate the $2,000,000 over 12 months and the contractor would invoice the Government for

$166,666.67 per month.

If the Government orders an additional 500 hours effective the 10th month of the CLIN period, and the hourly rate for the 3000 hour price band is $750/hour for a total of $375,000, the contractor would invoice the Government an additional $125,000 per month.

Months 1-9 $166,666.67

Months 10-12 $166,666.67

$125,000.00

$291,666.67

Even though the contractor is “guaranteed” the entire amount ordered over the life of the order, the actual monthly payments will be paid based on actual flight hours per month which could vary. Any unused/unpaid hours will be billed with the order’s final billing. When an invoice is submitted for each month, the number of hours actually flown will be the quantity. To elaborate, when the Government places an order for hours, a “period of performance” will be established with the intent that that one order will be sufficient to satisfy the entire Government need for that period. However, there is no guarantee that those hours will be spread evenly over the entire period due to variations in student production requirements. For instance if an order is placed for 2400 hours over a 12 month period, there could be 10 months where we use 200 hours (and you bill for only 200 hours), but there could also be one month where we use 300 hours and another where we only use 100 (and you would bill for only 300 or 100 respectively.) However, it’s also quite within contractual parameters that the USG could exhaust all of those 2400 hours by requiring 300 hours a month over the first 8 months of the contract, and then need to place a second order for an additional quantity to be performed over the last four months of that period.

Again, the key is that the contractor will only bill for the hours they actually perform as they perform them. The contractor will then bill off that pricing band for those remaining hours. When considering how to price your proposal, I encourage you to read the PWS in its entirety to understand the

Government’s flying requirements (including maximum daily sorties), and how and when the

Government will communicate its flying schedule/requirements to the contractor. This information can be found throughout the document.

3. Referencing Attachment 4, PPQ and Amendment 3 (labeled as 0004). The Amendment stated that questions T6 through T10 will be removed (by the Government) from the PPQ.

Question: Can the Government please provide Attachment 3 (PPQ ) in either Microsoft Word format or make the PDF editable as the current format has been signed and cannot be edited or filled out appropriately. Since Attachment 3 has been electronically signed, the document cannot be edited. The only option left for the end user is to fill in by hand and I'm assuming that wasn't the intent?

The Government will redact those questions from the PPQs after receipt. The references for the PPQ can fill them out by hand, convert them to a word document or rescan them to fill them in.

4. In the solicitation dated 19 December on page 6 of 14 in the highlighted "Example", it is still unclear on the USG's purchasing methodology based on the bands. First, see my email dated 14 December sent around 2:15pm CST that elaborates on this issue.

In the 19 Dec solicitation, the example has been updated to state that the USG could by 2500 hours under

CLIN 1001. What is NOT clear is: Is the USG buying Bands 1 and 2?

Band 1 is 2000 hours and Band 2 is 500 hours; this would make 2500 hours. This issue has a HUGE impact on pricing as the hours under 2000 is significantly higher than the next 500 hours. Your example says the USG is buying hours, and I quote, "at the hourly rate of pricing band 2". This implies the USG is buying 2500 at the Band 2 hourly pricing rate. However, your pricing matrix does not support this method. The way the USG has the pricing matrix setup, in your example, the USG is not really ordering

2500 hours, they are ordering 2000 and then another 500 hours, each at different rates.

The Government’s initial order can be from any pricing band for that period, not to exceed 4,000 during that period. The Government’s initial order for a given performance period will always be the projected total requirement for that entire period. For instance if the USG places an order for 2500 hours during

Option Period 1, that is because the USG believes that will be the entire requirement for that 12 month period. This initial order would be placed against pricing band 2, and the contractor would be paid monthly at the established hourly rate based on actual hours flown. However, since this is an IDIQ the contract vehicle provides flexibility should the USG’s requirement unexpectedly increase. If those 2500 hours were to only last for 10 months, then the USG could place a second order of 500 hours (for instance) against pricing band three. The 2500 hours from the initial order would be paid for at the pricing band 2 hourly rate, and then the 500 hours from the second order would be placed at the pricing band 3 rate.