Sole Source Justification and Approval_Black Widow Systems_Final_Redacted.pdf

This is a Department of the Air Force Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition document supporting a sole-source contract award.

The Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) Air Force Installation Contracting Center (AFICC), through the 772 ESS/PKF contracting activity, justifies awarding a firm-fixed-price sole-source contract to REDCAT/TEAL for the procurement of 350 complete Teal Black Widow small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS). The total estimated acquisition value is $8.8 million. The requirement supports Air Force Security Forces fleet modernization, centralized inventory management, Unit Type Code refit, and training integration with the 570th Combat Training Squadron. Each system includes one Teal Black Widow air vehicle with integrated 3CP payload, ground control station, three rechargeable high-endurance batteries, smart charger, field repair kit, tactical case, transport case, and digital operators manual. All 350 systems will be delivered to LOGDET at Fort Bliss, Texas to support centralized inventory management and training integration, with trained operators subsequently returning to their respective home stations equipped with Black Widow systems.

The justification is authorized under 10 U.S.C. § 3204(a)(1), establishing that only one responsible source exists and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. REDCAT/TEAL is the original equipment manufacturer and sole manufacturer of the Teal Black Widow system. The Air Force conducted an exhaustive market analysis reviewing mandatory sources, acquisition gateways, strategic sourcing vehicles, and General Services Administration catalogs, confirming Teal Drones Inc. as the only capable source. The Teal Black Widow is the direct next-generation (Gen 3) successor to the legacy Teal 2 (Gen 2), both exclusively manufactured by Teal Drones, providing the only true one-for-one generational upgrade path while preserving existing operator proficiency, minimizing training friction, ensuring interoperability with currently fielded systems and Unit Type Codes, and enabling rapid replacement of unsupported Teal 2 assets that have reached end-of-life status. Alternative platforms would require substantial transition costs, multi-year delays, complete training curriculum overhaul, and logistics burden. Non-Blue UAS-cleared platforms are statutorily prohibited. The document notes this is a deliberate first step in a larger fleet modernization strategy intended to develop comprehensive, brand-agnostic requirements for future full and open competition.