Phase 1- Draft Scope Considerations and Principles.pdf

Phase 1 of the NOTAM and Aeronautical Information Challenge-Based Acquisition

The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) mission is to provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world. It is imperative that our users have access to accurate information describing the current state of the National Airspace System (NAS) to ensure safety of flight.

Aeronautical Information (AI) and Notices to Air Missions (NOTAMs), a subset of AI, are a large component of this NAS information. Today, the FAA is facing significant challenges managing the current state lifecycle of AI and NOTAM systems.

This document provides definitions for scope and capabilities the FAA is seeking as part of an acquisition challenge. Included in this document are important considerations, relevant interdependencies, and key design principles vendors should consider when establishing a “common baseline.” The FAA is seeking modern, innovative service-based solutions from industry to aid in the management of both AI and NOTAMs.

Scope

As part of Phase 1 of the Challenge-Based Acquisition, the FAA is seeking a concept that will address two key elements.

Part 1: Targeted Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) Solution – Solution providers are asked to describe how they would specifically address the operational concept, technical, implementation and deployment, and operations and maintenance model for delivering a NOTAM solution.

Solution providers will be evaluated based on the completeness of their narrative, describing the features and capabilities included in delivering a complete NOTAM service capability. A description of current or planned availability, existing implementations, performance load and characteristics, operational readiness, and any software customization required to achieve the AI solution in the context of the Statement of Objectives (SOO). Capabilities supporting origination, management, and distribution of NOTAMs should be discussed, including human and machine-to-machine interfaces offered with the solution. Particular attention should be given to the deployment approach, including implementation, transition, training, and integration into an existing (e.g., legacy) environment. Evaluators will assess the completeness of addressing how the NOTAM solution fits within the overall AI solution, and how the solution provider will deliver remaining AI functions and capabilities around this initial solution. Solution providers are evaluated on the comprehensive presentation on how their solution addresses the origination, data management, and distribution of NOTAMs within the context of the overall AI solution.

Part 2: Aeronautical Information (AI) Solution – Solution providers will be asked to provide a narrative describing a comprehensive concept for delivering an AI solution. The response will include the solution provider’s operational concept for addressing the operational needs of the wide array of users, the technical solution, the implementation and deployment approach, and operations and maintenance model offered to sustain the AI solution. The technical solution should include a proposed architecture and describe how that architecture complies with the SOO and related technical objectives. Responders should be prepared to address implementation of the wide range of AI capabilities managing airspace (e.g., Central Altitude Reservations, Special Activity Airspace Editor, TFR Builder), Obstacles (e.g., obstacle editor), and airport/NavAid equipment.

Respondents should include a detailed implementation approach, including schedule, addressing each service component of the proposed AI solution, current or planned availability, any software customization that is required to achieve the AI solution SOO, operational readiness as an integrated AI solution, and respective deployment strategy and approach. All aspects of deployment approach should be included, addressing training, transition, and operational deployment of the integrated AI solution. Respondents are encouraged to propose innovative services-based contracting, or “software-as-a-service” business models (e.g., contractor-owned, contractor operated), understanding the FAA’s preference for a services delivery model, and will be expected to describe the business model envisioned and operational maintenance and sustainment concept of their proposed AI solution. Solution providers should highlight the scalability, efficiency, and long-term viability of the proposed solution and will be evaluated on the completeness of addressing the AI lifecycle, characterizing how their concepts address all aspects of AI origination, management, and distribution, their alignment to and compliance with the SOO.

• Respondents are encouraged to offer a complete solution, offering all components of the AI solution as part of the acquisition challenge. At a minimum, respondents must provide a response to Part 1 (Targeted NOTAMs Solution). Responses will be evaluated based on the completeness of the operational, technical, and maintenance concept in addressing each of element described above, the rationale of the proposed solution, basis for implementation schedule, realism of assumptions, and pragmatism of solution migration from prototype to production, and transition into full operations.

Key Considerations

The following are key considerations prospective solution providers should factor into their concept development.

• The FAA is seeking an end-state integrated AI solution. Offerors should describe the integrated nature of Part 2, and how it will be integrated into the final AI solution, as described in the SOO.

• The end-state AI solution in Part 2 should reflect a complete AI solution addressing AI Management, Airspace Management, and Obstacle Management, which may be distinct capabilities but are part of an integrated solution. As such, solution providers should state any assumptions for the end-state AI solution.

• The AI solution includes integration with the FAA’s System Wide Information Management (SWIM) for information exchange for further NAS integration into operations.

• Current (e.g., legacy) systems include a large volume of stored (e.g., active legacy) data the must be accounted for in the proposed AI lifecycle management, development, deployment, and transition of the proposed AI solution.

• NOTAMs and AI include highly regulated data sets and concept papers should demonstrate relevant compliance to these regulatory requirements. For example, rules regulating Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) dictate who can generate TFRs, how they are generated, etc. The vendor will comply with any restrictions. The FAA will retain data rights to all NOTAM and AI data within the proposed AI solution, noting the need to address confidentiality, integrity, and availability data security posture.

• NOTAM generation is a highly federated environment with sources including, but not limited to human-generated inputs (e.g., airport staff, air traffic controllers) and machine-generated inputs (e.g., intelligent systems, automation systems).

• FAA AI solutions, including NOTAMs, must interoperate with existing global AI solutions and the respective legacy systems, formats, and workflow processes. As such, proposed solutions should accommodate legacy machine interfaces (i.e., JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), web services using customized Extensible Markup Language (XML), Aeronautical Information Exchange Model (AIXM)-based exchanges, Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)/database) and manual entry workflows for inputting NOTAMs.

• The FAA’s SOO for the future AI solution includes evolution to digital AI products, which include compliance with the latest digital technology, including geospatial, JSON, AIXM, additional formats that the AI solution will be required to accommodate without the need for software customization.

• Respondents are welcomed to propose any delivery model (i.e., contractor-owned, contractor-operated), understanding the FAA’s preference for a services delivery model, as part of the concept paper, which should include robust rationale and well-articulated assumptions.

• Solution providers should highlight any proprietary software, third-party software licenses, or other restrictions embedded as part of the technical solution.

• The FAA is a highly regulated U.S. Federal agency with requirements for complying to International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) regulations. The FAA is required to comply with applicable laws, Presidential Executive Orders, policies, and directives regulating foreign-developed software, which will be evaluated as part of the rationale and realism of the proposed solutions.

Key Design Principles

The following are key design principles that solution providers factor into their approach.

• FAA solutions should adopt open systems architecture, incorporate industry standards, and industry best practices.

• FAA solutions should comply with non-regulating organizations that promote innovation by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology (e.g., NIST).

• FAA solutions will be highly available and highly resilient to catastrophic failure, including the capabilities to recover user accessibility via service availability in near real-time, under any condition.

• FAA solutions will employ Zero Trust architecture principles and clearly demonstrate the implementation of such principles.

• FAA solutions must integrate with SWIM for message exchange, using industry standards, including Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).