RFI - WRN Air Transportation 2021.doc

United States Postal Service

Request for Information

Regional Air Transportation Service – Montana and South Dakota December 7, 2020

BACKGROUND

The mission of the United States Postal Service (USPS) is to provide trusted, affordable, and universal mailing and shipping services to the people of the United States. In carrying out this mission, USPS delivers to nearly 157 million addresses and collects outgoing mail from its customers at the time of delivery. USPS also offers mailing and shipping services through approximately 31,000 postal retail outlets, 70,000 non-postal retail outlets, and its website, www.usps.com. To learn more about USPS, please visit http://about.usps.com.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to identify suppliers that are capable of fulfilling a potential future need for regional air transportation and ancillary services across various air stops throughout Montana and South Dakota. Specifically, USPS is seeking information regarding potential suppliers’ capability of providing line-haul, ground handling, and terminal handling services in these locations. USPS anticipates these services being required between the following air stops:

Great Falls (GTF)

Kalispell (FCA)

Missoula (MSO)

Wolf Point (OLF)

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The supplier will be required to provide sufficient resources to efficiently and effectively perform the line-haul, ground handling, and terminal handling services proposed, including taking possession, transporting, scanning and transmitting data to USPS as needed, loading, and delivering mail to designated delivery points at specified times. The supplier must be able to accommodate up to the maximum daily pounds for each segment within the specified tender-delivery window. The supplier must have the ability to transport mail in excess of 16 ounces per piece in accordance with Transportation Security Administration (TSA) requirements. The supplier must stay abreast of potentially changing conditions, including, but not limited to, tail swaps, late aircraft, late surface vehicles, mechanical breakdowns, weather, etc., and coordinating adjustments with USPS personnel accordingly. The supplier must ensure that all equipment and facilities are in proper working order. The supplier must protect and stage mail in a secure area while it is in the supplier’s possession. The supplier must not transport mail in the cab of its vehicles except for live animals.

Ground handling services include loading and unloading aircraft and performing all related ground handling operation activities. For inbound flights, the supplier must provide all necessary ground handling equipment, communications, and personnel to meet and park inbound aircraft, unload containers and / or loose mail, and transport the containers and / or loose mail to the terminal handling area. For outbound flights, the supplier must provide all necessary ground handling equipment, communications, and personnel to load containers and / or loose mail and transport the containers from the terminal handling area to the outbound aircraft.

Terminal Handling services include loading and unloading ground equipment and performing all related terminal handling operation activities. At destination and once the mail reaches the terminal handling area, the supplier will be required to unload mail from the ground equipment into MTE or onto belts. When transporting mail in carts, containers, or other vehicles, the mail must be securely enclosed to protect it from loss, depredation, and damage. At origin and once USPS tenders mail to the supplier in Handling Units (e.g., trays, sacks, flat tubs, or outsides) and / or MTE (e.g., rolling stock, wire container), the supplier must provide labor and equipment to sort loose sacks, pouches, trays, and outside pieces to the flight designated and in accordance with USPS routing instructions. The supplier will be required to load mail onto the ground equipment for transportation to the aircraft.

The handling of mail must always be performed by screened employees. Screening includes a criminal background check, drug screen, fingerprinting, and issuance of a clearance by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The supplier’s aircraft must be equipped and operated in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulation 121 and / or Federal Aviation Regulation 135. The supplier must also be certified to handle certain hazardous (HAZMAT) or perishable products (including mailable live animals) in accordance with USPS regulations. The supplier must provide transportation of mail in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local authorities.

CAPACITY REQUIREMENTS

Suppliers must have the capacity to accommodate estimated mail volumes which are roughly 200 cubic feet per trip, however, volume variance will be experienced. Actual volume to be transported may vary with USPS customers’ mailing patterns.

SCHEDULE / FREQUENCY REQUIREMENTS

Below is a sample schedule for which the supplier would be required to perform the required services. Note that the schedule would be subject to change pending weather conditions. The supplier must be prepared to operate extra trips or extra service days when needed especially during USPS’s peak season (traditionally Thanksgiving – New Year’s Day)

X167 = Daily except Sat/Sun/Mon X127 = Daily except Sun/Mon/Tue

7 = Sunday only 6 = Saturday only X17 = Daily except Sun/Mon X67 = Daily except Sat/Sun

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Suppliers who are interested must submit, at a minimum, the following information:

· Company name, including any subsidiaries or associated companies

· Company address

· Company website

· Point of contact’s name (first and last)

· Point of contact’s email address

· Point of contact’s phone number

· Company overview

· Description of company capabilities as they pertain to the requirements described herein. Description of available fleet including aircraft types and ground vehicles, the quantity of each in the fleet, estimated weight/volume capacities

· Explanation as to how the available fleet would be allocated or used to fulfill the requirements described herein

· Copy of 91/121/125 air certificate Submissions and questions pertaining to this RFI should be sent to Kevin Wang at Yun.Wang@usps.gov.

The deadline for suppliers to provide their submissions is by 11:59pm Eastern Time (ET) on February 5, 2020.

Provisions Provision A-2: Solicitation for Information or Planning Purposes (March 2006)

1. The Postal Service does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this solicitation or to pay for the information solicited.

2. This solicitation is issued for the purposes of gathering information around potential suppliers’ ability to provide air transportation and related services within the Western Regional Network (Montana and South Dakota) RFI – Western Regional Air Transportation

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