JA 26 0094 IRST PMDSD ECU FRP 1 thru 3 Redacted.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

PROGRAM EXECUTIVE OFFICER

TACTICAL AIRCRAFT PROGRAMS

47123 BUSE ROAD BLDG 2272

PATUXENT RIVER, MARYLAND 20670-1547

J&A 26-0094

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL

FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

1. Contracting Activity.

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), Headquarters.

2. Description of the Action Being Approved.

This Justification and Approval (J&A) authorizes and approves an action on a sole-source basis to Parker Meggitt Defense Systems Inc. (PMDSI) of Irvine, California, under a Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) contract type. This contract will support NAVAIR and Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) requirements for the procurement of F/A-18E/F Infrared Search and Track (IRST) Block II Environmental Control Unit (ECU) Weapons Replaceable Assembly (WRA) Full Rate Production (FRP) Lots 1, 2 and 3. This J&A supersedes J&A 21-0253 and covers a base contract award for FRP Lot 1 and two additional options for FRP Lots 2 & 3.

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

This acquisition is for the procurement of a total estimated quantity of IRST Block II ECUs:

Estimated ECU Quantities:

Production Lot NAVAIR NAVSUP Total

FRP I - III

The total estimated value of these requirements is $34M, which will be funded with Aircraft Procurement, Navy (APN-5 and APN-6), Navy Working Capital Funds (NWCF) appropriations as follows:

Estimated Dollar Value in Millions

APPN ($M)

FY25-FY27

Total

APN-5 (NAVAIR) $27

APN-6/NWCF (NAVSUP) $7

Total: $34

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

10 U.S.C. 3204(a)(1), Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority.

Full and Open competition is not feasible for this procurement. In accordance with FAR 6.103-1(c)(2), the Government has deemed the requirements listed above to be available only through the original source and award to any other source would result in unacceptable delays to the Government in fulfilling the Navy’s requirements.

From a schedule perspective, without the procurement of unlimited data rights to a full Technical Data Package (TDP) that includes the proprietary source code, competitively awarding and qualifying another vendor to meet the same specification requirements, would take approximately eight to ten years based on historical timelines for development and qualification of a new supplier.

Without a complete TDP, any new vendor would be required to redevelop an ECU for the IRST Block I system to incorporate the necessary Block II changes. A new vendor would take four to five years to develop a production representative system. The Government would need three to four years to qualify a new source through Production Readiness Reviews, and component and flight test of the ECU build up into an IRST system. This cumulative timeline of approximately nine years would present an unacceptable delay to IRST fleet requirements and introduce significant risk for production line gaps.

The Government has obtained the necessary technical data to support the maintenance concept to be employed. At this time the Government does not intend to procure a full TDP (includes SW), CORE determination was made that SW would be held at the Original Engineering Manufacturer (OEM). MDSI has the only active production line capable of providing this WRA within the needed timeframes to support fleet requirements. For these reasons, the ECU cannot be procured by any source other than MDSI, without resulting in unacceptable schedule impacts.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers from as Many Offerors as Practicable.

A sources-sought was posted on Sam.Gov in accordance with DFARS PGI 206.302-1 on 30 January 2026. responded to the sources sought. The NAVAIR Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) has reviewed the capability statement provided by TAT and concluded these ECUs do not fulfill the size, weight, and dimensions or type of cooling system required for the IRST program. The ECU for IRST is already designed, developed, and tested for a specific form, factor, fit, with a requirement for Polyalphaolefin (PAO) cooling and performance specifications, hence the mention of FRP in the sources sought. The design, development, and test necessary for reprogramming and adaptation of these ECUs will not fulfill the production timelines demanded. NAVAIR Capability Determination Memo SER V2234/26-004 was released in response to As required by FAR 5.101, a synopsis of the proposed contract was published on sam.gov on 30 January 2026 and no responses were received.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

The Contracting Officer has determined the anticipated cost to the Government for the supplies/services covered by this J&A will be fair and reasonable.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition.

For the reasons set forth in Paragraph 5, NAVAIR has no plans at this time to compete future contacts for the types of supplies/services covered by this document. If another potential source emerges, NAVAIR will assess whether competition for future requirements is feasible. As this is a follow-on for supplies and services previously awarded on a non-competitive basis, in accordance with DFARS PGI 206.104-71, the prior CJ&A 21-0254 was provided to the approval authority for review. Approval of this CJ&A signifies the approval authority has made the determination required by DFARS

PGI 206.104-72.