Q A_final.pdf

Q&A

1. Reference Cat B Cargo CLIN 0069 (FY13) and 1069 (FY14). Is the FY13 route changing from non-contoured to contoured in the option year FY14 as stated?

Answer: Yes the route does change to contoured, both CLINs are correct.

2. Address Statement of Lease 30 months, full contract period plus 6 months (30 month lease required, October 2012 through March 2015).

Answer: Statement of Lease Agreement must be valid for the entire term of the contract including the option year plus 6 months.

3. Update FY13 Combi rate trip cost and correct ferry cost.

Answer: All CLINS have been updated to reflect the FY12 rate.

4. Update Information Assurance and Cyber Security language which reads as Attachment 12 on L-6 (pg 88) of Solicitation to read Attachment 1, Appendix 3I as indicated on pg 108 (Attachment 1, page 6 of 7) of Solicitation.

Answer: Language has been updated.

5. CLIN 0078AA has no pricing; is this correct? (also CLINs 1098AA, 1099AA, 1100AA)

Answer: No the original CLINs were incorrect, all CLINs have been update to reflect FY12 rates

6. CLIN 0090AA states it is for a 400 ACL; should it be 260?

Answer: No, CLIN 0090AA is correct at 400 ACL

7. Part I, Section H, H-1(a) Passenger and Public Liability Insurance. Should the reference in line 4 be to Paragraph 11 (versus Paragraph 14)?

Answer: Yes, Updated language to reflects the change.

8. Part I, Section H, H-9 Submission of Cost or Pricing Data – FY14 Contract Performance There are several references to the FY14 contract which seems counter to this solicitation for the FY13/FY14 term. Will there be two separate contracts for FY13 and FY14 or should that have been reference to FY15?

Answer: No, there are not two separate contracts. There will be a FY13 and FY14 rate established. The Uniform Rates and Rules for the FY14 option period will be established through the rate making process. Pricing data must be submitted to establish the rate prior to the beginning of the option period.

9. Part I, Section H, H-17 Allocation and Ordering of Expansion Airlift – International.

Can you confirm your plan for quarterly entitlement adjustments please? This appears that the aeromed segment will be evaluated and adjusted quarterly, while all other segments will be adjusted only at the beginning of the option year? Non-entitled contractors awarded after RFP closing will be awarded MVP at the next quarterly recalculation?

Answer: Updated language to reflect change. Aeromed and Non-entitled contractors will be evaluated at the option year. Also, note language change to allowable aeromed aircraft from maximum of 40 to 15 aircraft in the program.

10. Part I, Section H, H-24 Assured Business Last sentence, included in the Assured Business guarantee is the total FY12 fixed buy award per contract? Should this be FY13/FY14?

Answer: Yes, Updated the language to reflect change.

11. Part I, Section K, pages K-7 and K-8 Shouldn’t all references on these two pages to FY12 be FY13/14?

Answer: Yes, Section has been corrected to FY13/14.

12. Part I, Section L, L-9(c)(2) Stage III cap is stated not to exceed 115% of the maximum WBE but the cover letter 4.(d) states that the cap is 120%. Please confirm the cap percentage. Also see M-5 (d)(1)(iii)- page M-9 where 115% is again stated.

Answer: Stage III will not exceed 115% of the maximum WBE. Cover letter has been updated to reflect 115%.

13. Part I, Section L, L-9(d)(4) Commission Report Previously questioned due date of 15th business day following end of quarter and was told this should be 30 days. Should this be corrected to 30 days for this solicitation?

Answer: Yes, Updated the language to reflect quarterly commission will be due no later than the 30th business day.

14. Part I, Section M, M-5(d)(4)(v) Conditions for acceptance of aircraft Do not understand the second sentence of this section. Should this be removed from the solicitation?

Answer: Yes, we removed the second sentence from the paragraph.

15. Part II, Performance Work Statement Page numbering goes to Page 47 of 52 but ends at page 47. Are there additional pages that were not included?

Answer: No, we updated PWS pages to 47. There are no missing or additional pages.

16. Attachment 5 – Wage Determinations Is there a file to be included for this Attachment?

Answer: No, the applicable wage determination will be incorporated into the awarded contract.

17. A question has been asked regarding Chapter 443 insurance. Specifically, if a carrier intends to offer two hundred plus aircraft to the Short Range section knowing that the Government will only accept a small portion due to the cap on the number of aircraft allowed, would that carrier be required to procure Chapter 443 insurance for all aircraft listed on the Appendix 3A (due 30 May 2012), as the solicitation reads, or only those aircraft accepted in CRAF during the entire period of performance (by Oct 1, 2012)? Other types of insurance require that procurement be made prior to performance of services and to cover the entire contract period, and do not require coverage at the time of Appendix 3A submission.

Please confirm if this is a requirement prior to contract award. Were previous carriers required to provide evidence of Chapter 443 when they submitted 347 Short Range aircraft on their Appendix 3A last summer?

Answer: Confirmed, all aircraft list on the Appendix 3A and offered into the CRAF program are required to procure Chapter 443 insurance at or before the time of submission of the 3A. This is consistent with prior year contract and necessary for the filing for indemnification as well.

18. Page B-4, Para B3i(5), states “The award will maximize modern aircraft first followed by entitlement.” Whereas on page H-11, Para H-17b it states “Awards for expansion business will be allocated monthly based on entitlement calculated by dividing each contractor’s mobilization value (MV) points by the total points of all entitled contractors offering in a category.” Why doesn’t the Government place an emphasis on modern aircraft in the Expansion requirement and base the award to “maximize modern aircraft first followed by entitlement”?

Answer: As revised in the attached Amendment 1 in H-17b, we intend to utilize modern, fuel efficient aircraft to the maximum extent possible. Modern utilization may take precedence over entitlement.

19. Page M-12, Step 2, states “If the percentage of commercial revenue computed in Step 1 above is 60% or higher, the 60/40 rule has been satisfied and no further action will be taken.”;

however, Step 1 is computing commercial block hours, not revenue.

Answer: Revised to read block hours.

20. PWS Page 3 of 52, para 1.1.2.3.2. CHECK-IN COUNTERS (LEASED) AT SEATTLE- TACOMA IAP. This paragraph refers to “Contractor” several times, but the carrier has no control of check-in counters. This is a Government responsibility with another contract. Suggest delineating “Contractor” and “Air Carrier” in section 1.1.2.X.X. to avoid confusion.

Answer: Updated language to replace Contractor with Air carrier

21. PWS, Page 4 of 52, para 1.1.4.1. BEVERAGE SERVICE: “Beverages shall be commensurate with commercial business class beverage services.” This is a drastic deviation from the previous PWS.

Answer: Noted. All beverages must be equal in quality and service to which you would serve to commercial business class passengers.

22. PWS, Page 6 of 52, para 1.2.1. CHECKED BAGGAGE LIABILITY. Why did the Government remove the statement from the prior year’s PWS which stated “Loss of Hand-carried baggage is not the responsibility of the carrier.” at the end of the paragraph?

Answer: Passengers are responsible for their hand carried baggage and any discrepancy should be handled the same as commercial passengers.

23. PWS, Page 9 of 52, para 1.3.15. states “During an operational stop or carrier controllable delay, the contractor shall be required to provide courier lodging, meals, and ground transportation.” Most military orders allow for “Variations Authorized” when traveling.

Additionally, is the Government verifying that military members are stipulating on their travel voucher that meals were provided and the member does not get per diem when the carrier provides meals?

Answer: Noted. This is a government requirement to provide courier care during a carrier controllable delay. Official travel regulations provide over site on Government traveler entitlements and payment for reconciliation, this does not absolve carriers of their responsibility.

24. PWS, Page 22 of 52, para 3.5.5. What is the Governments intent with this paragraph?

Should the APU be running during concurrent servicing of only PE missions or are only aircraft operating PE missions required to have an operable APU? How is an operable APU part of Government-Furnished Property And Services?

Answer: The intent of this paragraph is to ensure that carriers operating Patriot Express missions have the capability to operate an APU during concurrent servicing. The location of this requirement coincides with equipment used during the servicing which could be Government furnished.

25. PWS, pages 26 and 40 of 52, para 4.2.5 and 5.2.5, “CONTRACTOR COMPANY PERSONNEL AND COMPANY FACILITY SECURITY OFFICE (FSO)” should read

“CONTRACTOR COMPANY PERSONNEL AND COMPANY FACILITY SECURITY

OFFICER (FSO)”

Answer: Updated Language to reflect the change

26. PWS, Pages 27 and 40 of 52, para 4.2.7. and 5.2.7. Should this be located in section 3 instead of sections 4 and 5?

Answer: Noted. There will be no change.

27. PWS, page 30 and 44 of 52, para 4.5.3. and 5.5.3. “REPLACEMENT CHARTS AND FLIGHT INFORMATION PACKETS (FLIPs):” should read “REPLACEMENT CHARTS AND FLIGHT INFORMATION PUBLICATIONS (FLIPs)”

Answer: Noted, updated the language.

28. PWS, page 37 of 52, para 4.23. The contractor shall contact the 618 AOC (TACC) one hour prior to departure for all aircraft impacted by Positive Launch. There is guidance whereby the TACC is to notify TCAQ, but is there any place where they have to notify the carrier? How will the carrier know to contact the TACC an hour prior unless they have been advised of a PCL?

Answer: Direction to the contracted air carrier will come from TCAQ with regards to positive launch during operation.

29. Section 1 – 1.1.4 – Meal Service / Beverage Service Requirement has been reworded to say that carriers must provide service on a level commensurate with business class service. The current PWS for FY11 is specific in regards to meal schedules, types of meals, segment times, elapsed times between services, entrée choices, etc.

Does this mean that these services are now provided at our own discretion?

Answer: Meal Service must be equal in quality and service to which you would serve to commercial business class passengers.

30. Section 1 – 1.1.3 – In-Flight Passenger Services Also removed is the specific requirement for the carrier to supply: pillows, blankets, towel service, inflight movies & stereo, children amenities, etc.

Does this mean we are no longer obligated to supply these items specifically and that it is up to our discretion?

Answer: In-Flight Service must be equal in quality and service to which you would supply to commercial passengers. All amenities available on international commercial flights must be provided and consistent with performance-based service contracting.

31. Do you have a plan of attack on how the modern combi's are going to be priced?

Answer: Yes, combi services will be paid at the Uniform Rate for Combi services. As new aircraft are introduced into the system pricing, data will be collected and analyzed for rates as well as fuel burn.

32. Q. Should the reference in H-7 Collective bargaining, be to Section C, PWS, Section 4, paragraphs 4.6 – 4.6.4 ? H-7 Collective Bargaining - reference to a. The Contractor agrees to advise the applicable Collective Bargaining Units of the contract requirements set forth in Section C, PWS, Section 4, paragraphs 4.0.1 and 4.1 and Appendix 5, paragraph 3.5.

Answer: Noted, updated language.

33. Q. Should this H-9 reference below be to the FY14 uniform rate?

Pg H-6, H-9 SUBMISSION OF COST OR PRICING DATA – FY14 CONTRACT PERFORMANCE –INTERNATIONAL: Failure to submit the required cost and pricing data and the certification of that data by the final cutoff dates for inclusion in the FY13 uniform rate, as established by USTRANSCOM, may result in ineligibility for award of an FY14 CRAF International contract.

Answer: Noted, updated language

34. Q. Please clarify the cumulative WBE maximum below section L & Section M – is it 115% or 120%? Cover letter also referenced 120%. Pg L-6 L-9. PROPOSAL PREPARATION REQUIREMENTS C(2) MV points for international business will not be awarded for any aircraft offered to the program that causes the cumulative WBE to exceed 115% of the Stage III maximum WBE identified in Paragraph M-5b. EXCEPTION: New entrants will be allowed to enter the program during the year and will have one aircraft assigned to Stage III only with an MV point value of 25% of the earned mobility value.

Pg M-9

(iii) Stage III. The international section (long and short-range) of Stage III will be filled first by all aircraft in Stages I and II, as appropriate. The remainder of Stage III will be filled by aircraft selected from those aircraft not yet stage assigned, in proportion to each carrier’s total CRAF long-range or short-range international offer, as applicable. Those aircraft fulfilling 100% of the requirement will receive the full MV credit allowed for Stage III and those aircraft fulfilling between 100% and 115% of the requirement will receive 25% of the MV credit allowed for Stage III. MV points will not be awarded for any aircraft offered to the program that exceeds 115% of the Stage III maximum WBE identified in Paragraph M-5b. New entrants will be allowed to enter the program during the year and will have one aircraft assigned to Stage III only with a MV point value of 25% of its earned mobility value (3). Domestic: The domestic segment is an important part of the CRAF program capabilities and is designed to meet substantially increased aircraft requirements during periods of emergency. Each offeror submitting an offer shall indicate on Appendix 3A, the number of aircraft, by type and FAA registration number which it is making available for acceptance by the Government to meet the contractual conditions set forth herein. In order to be considered for award, a minimum of 15 percent of a carrier's capable aircraft must be committed to the Domestic Services Section of the National Segment of CRAF. However, there will be a cap of the number of aircraft allowed in CRAF, based on 120% of the requirement of passenger Stage III (30 aircraft) as stated in paragraph M- 5b., which equals 36. Allowing for rounding fractions to the next whole number, the maximum allowed aircraft quantity will not exceed 36. New entrants will be allowed to enter the program during the year, and stage assignments for all domestic carriers will be adjusted as required to maintain specified levels. Outlined below is the formula for calculating each carrier’s contribution to CRAF.

Answer: Stage III will not exceed 115% of the maximum WBE. Cover letter has been updated to reflect 115%.

35. Q. Should the reference below (in section H-24) be with regard to FY13/14?

Pg H-17, H-24. ASSURED BUSINESS - Department of Defense (DOD) CRAF Assured Business Authority as Described in the FY2009 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA):

Awards for assured business will be allocated based on entitlement calculated by dividing each contractor's mobilization value (MV) points by the total points of all entitled contractors offering in the passenger and cargo category. Included in the Assured Business guarantee is the total FY12 fixed buy award per contract.

Answer: Yes, updated language

36. Q. Reference page B-4 Is this amount ($2.6B) for both contract years FY13 & FY14?

Answer: Yes.

37. Q. Is it possible to have the maximum award amount broken out by forecasted contract year?

Answer: FY13 is 1.4B and FY14 is 1.2B

38. Q. Which method below (I-7 or H-17) will be used for the FY14 entitlement?

I-7 FAR 52.217-5 EVALUATION OF OPTIONS (JUL 1990) Except when it is determined in accordance with FAR 17.206(b) not to be in the Government’s best interests, the Government will evaluate offers for award purposes based on percentage of entitlement and each carrier’s aircraft capability to execute fixed buy requirements for FY13/FY14. The same percentage of team or individual carrier’s entitlement for FY13 will be applied to FY14. Evaluation of options will not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

H-17. ALLOCATION AND ORDERING OF EXPANSION AIRLIFT – INTERNATIONAL

Sentence below from Paragraph b Entitled contractor’s MV points will be recalculated by the Government at the beginning of the option year, to adjust for any aircraft offered by new contractors or for replacement aircraft committed by contractors during the contract period.

Answer: Updated Language. I-7 relates to how entitlement will be applied on the fixed buy for FY13/14. H-17 relates to how we will buy expansion services.

39. Q. Are you able to provide the a version of section K as a fillable attachment (word doc) ?

Please see details: Section K – The actual word doc attachment provided with the solicitation (to complete) is a different version than what is included within the solicitation itself.

The attachment’s section K-3 is the commercial block hours also reflecting the 2010 calendar year for block hour calculation. The solicitation version has K-4 as the Commercial Block Hours with the 2011 calendar year reflected.

Answer: Revised Section K is uploaded.

40. Reference Pg M-11 Q. Should the reference below to MIA aircraft be removed?

(v) Aircraft dry leased or wet leased without recapture provisions are not eligible for acceptance into the CRAF. (Not sure is MIAs aircraft are wet or dry leased, but either eventuality is covered here. Either way, we need to see the lease agreement to verify the recapture provision.

Answer: Yes, updated the language to remove second sentence.

41. Reference PWS Pg 2 of 52 Q. With the removal of FY12’s PWS section 1.1.1.3 & requirement for O2 Concentrators, please confirm this requirement still exists, but is now expected to be standard protocol with international travel, thereby no longer requiring contract definition?

Answer: The standard protocol and performance on international commercial flights must be provided and consistent with performance-based service contracting.

42. Reference PWS Pg 17 of 52 SDS, Seat Pitch removed from the SDS-Discrepancies – Critical Q. Should this item be used as an example of a critical discrepancy in 2.6.2.4 – see below?

2.6.2.4 A discrepancy will be established whenever the contractor’s aircraft or service is in violation of the items outlined in this SDS. During an inspection, each type of discrepancy will be counted only once (i.e. all seats not in correct seat pitch will be one critical discrepancy;

multiple bags not delivered within baggage off-load times will be one major discrepancy).

Answer: Removed seat pitch reference

43. Q. Reference PWS 4.4.8., 4.14.1, 5.1.2.2, Should references below to OL-F or OL-G remain?

Answer: Updated language to reflect change from OL-F or OL-G to TCAQ-CM.

44. Q. The Combi requirements for both FY13 and FY14 indicate “FIXED”. As an operator planning to bring combi aircraft online in the near term for USTC, how will entitlement, bidding and awarding of the FY13 and FY14 business be handled?

The combi is a unique category requiring aircraft in special configuration similar to the Aeromedical equipment. Will the combi be handled in the same manner as the AE outlined below? I understand the provision below is in reference to Expansion Airlift. I would also appreciate guidance on FIXED combi business as well.

H-17. ALLOCATION AND ORDERING OF EXPANSION AIRLIFT – INTERNATIONAL

b. b. Awards will take into consideration factors serving the best interests of the Government and the Commander’s intent and the National Defense Authorization Act’s (NDAA) direction to utilize modern, fuel efficient aircraft to the maximum extent possible. Awards for expansion business will be allocated monthly based on entitlement calculated by dividing each contractor’s mobilization value (MV) points by the total points of all entitled contractors offering in a category. Each contractor must have aircraft committed to CRAF in each category it seeks to receive entitlement/business. For example, if a contractor seeks entitlement in Large Passenger, it must have aircraft committed to CRAF in that category. Entitled contractor’s MV points will be recalculated by the Government at the beginning of the option year, to adjust for any aircraft offered by new contractors or for replacement aircraft committed by contractors during the contract period. Contractors who propose STC compliant aeromedical evacuation aircraft throughout the year will also be evaluated and entitlement recalculated by the Government at the beginning of each quarter. If placing those aircraft in the aeromed program will result in exceeding the maximum of 40, a re-distribution or re-allocation of aircraft will be performed to ensure the new contractor has at least 2 aircraft in Stage II as described in Section M. Entitlement percentages will be recalculated for each category of business.

Answer: Reference B3i(5) for Combi Services. Combi Services will be awarded on the fixed buy for both FY13/14. Aircraft offered to fulfill Combi Airlift requirements must be in control of the carrier by close of the solicitation referenced in Section L-9(d). Also, the Aeromed program will not exceed 15 aircraft, reference question #9.

45. Concerns about the MV Bonus calculations. The language in FY13 is inconsistent with the language from previous solicitations (FY11 and FY12). In previous years, the MV bonus was based on missions operated from July 1 thru June 30. For example in FY12, the measurement period was July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011. The FY13 solicitation has changed the measurement period to calendar year (Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2011 for FY13, and Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2012 for FY14).

This approach double counts missions from Jan 1 – June 30, 2011, as they were used for the FY12 bonus calculation and will be used for half of the FY13 calculation. The original intent was to use the MOST Recent 12 months to calculate MV bonus and this was discussed at several EWGs. This change benefits carriers who had significantly larger fleets and entitlements 2 years ago (when revenues and missions were significantly higher). Today, these carriers today fly significantly less missions with much smaller fleets due to their deteriorating financial conditions. They should not be rewarded in FY13/14 entitlement for missions they operated as much as 2 years ago. Carriers with 2-5 committed aircraft in FY13 could have as many or more MVP than carriers with 50-70 committed aircraft due to MV bonus and the overloading of Stage I by these same carries. I find it hard to see the equity or fairness in this approach.

Answer: Updated language-5(e)(6)(ii) to reflect change from Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2011 for FY13, and Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2012 for FY14 to period 1 July 11 through 30 Jun 12, for FY14 the period will be 1 July 12 through 30 June 13.

46. Confusion on the length of the contract period (12 months or 24 months). The approach that USTC seems to have taken indicates that the FY13/14 solicitation/contract is not a one year contract with an option to renew in FY14 but rather a 2 year contract. This is indicative of the 2 year fixed award and the Lease Conformance requirement of 30 months. Please clarify that this is indeed a 2 year contract and what would happen if USTC did not “option” FY14? What would be the status of the FY14 Fixed award?

Answer: The FY13/14 solicitation is for a base period (FY13) and one year option (FY14). The lease period should be applied for the entire length of the contract, base and option period + 6 months. If there are significant changes from our original requirement (ie. change in CRAF program requirements, large reduction or addition in requirements, market changes) the Government would evaluate whether or not to exercise the option or re-solicit for FY14.

47. The solicitation section B-1 has cargo Large Cargo I now split into 2 different groups Large I MFE (100T) and Large I (90T). The SEC B Continuation pages, CLINs 0065 to 0073 and 1065 to 1073 all have 100T requirements. Will all awards in these CLINs be made to Large I MFE (100T) aircraft and no awards will be made to Large 1 (90T) aircraft?

Answer: All of the CLINs referenced are cargo fixed buy CLINs validated for the 100T category. To the extent that we receive offers by 100T aircraft, the intention is to fulfill all of the specified CLINs with the modern aircraft offered.