Sole Source Document_Redacted.pdf

This document is a Determination & Findings (D&F) for a sole source procurement action by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC/C3NK).

The procurement concerns two Rohde & Schwarz M3AR Software Defined Radios (SDR) required for the Tactical Datalink Networks (TDN) laboratory. The M3AR is a multi-band capable airborne transceiver covering 30 MHz to 400 MHz and supports NATO frequency hopping Second-generation Anti-jam UHF Radio for NATO (SATURN) waveform. The radio can be integrated with NATO encryption to protect voice and data transmissions and is inter-operable with NATO KY-58 and KY-100 encryption devices. The sole source action is justified under RFO 13.101(b) for noncommercial products and services, as only one source is reasonably available. The contracting officer identified that procuring a different brand of SDR would introduce unacceptable variables into testing and validation processes, including differing phase noise characteristics, incompatible proprietary firmware and software stacks, different user interfaces and control protocols, and inability to guarantee that software updates would function correctly on fielded equipment. Efforts to identify authorized resellers or distributors of R&S M3AR radios determined that no established resellers exist for this specific model. The determination was signed by Contracting Officer Chhhunheng Phay, DAF, and approval authority rests with the Contracting Officer in accordance with DAF Approval Authorities Matrix PM 26-C-11 Matrix Item 51.