Q A_No.2.docx

M67400-16-T-0009 Parachute Operations Training

No.2

The followings are a list of the potential offeror’s questions and the government’s response to those questions.

Question 1: I know question time is closed but I have to ask since the requirement seems to be written around a single entity and is in some part not open to the fair bidding process.

The requested Army ATIC qualification is no longer a US Army program of certification and has not been for some years now, since this is the case the "system" has not produced instructors for some time, there is in fact only 1 person still using the ATIC "tag" to sell training, coincidentally this same person operates a one man business out of the same airfield as another company and has use of the same requested 5 listed AZAR drop zones. The only difference being that the solo operation is based over 2 miles from the airport.

For clarification, what was intended to be the ATIC certification (now obsolete) was long ago dampened down by the Army and rolled into the Army Jump master course, this is a course that can be attended by anybody with 50 jumps.

Is the USMC looking for instruction based on a 50 jump experience level?

Answer: The "ATIC" course is still offered at Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona. This course has been taught by Marines and Army instructors under the Army's Military Free Fall Course. The reason for requesting the "ATIC" qualification as an instructor is because this is a proven POI built to enhance the insertion capabilities of the unit into unknown drop zones of varying difficulty. 50 jumps does not qualify an individual to teach this skill set. Having previously completed this course is what qualifies an instructor. Currently Marines are not allowed to attend this course. This is the reason for looking to external contracting. We have multiple Marines within the unit with over 80 jumps, however the knowledge to conduct this training is not resident within and must be externally sourced.

Here is the course code for the Army's ATIC course : Military Free Fall Advance Tactical Infiltration Course (2E-F260/011-F100) This course is not open to Marines at this time, which is why we request former instructors to run the course for us.