sUAS_Payload Salient Characteristic.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 18 KB Posted
- Attached to
- sUAS & Payload Industry Input
- Solicitation number
- FA491325SS0001
- Issued by
-
Department of the Air Force
About this file
This file is a Salient Characteristics document for a small unmanned aerial system (sUAS) with detailed technical specifications for potential military use by Task Force 99 (TF99). The document outlines preferred and minimum specifications for a sUAS platform, including payload volume (10-20 liters), payload weight (5-10 kg), maximum takeoff weight (25-250 kg), range (1,260-2,500 km), endurance (8-24 hours), and flight ceiling (9,000-18,000 ft MSL). Key technical requirements include VTOL capability, fuel-injected or alternative energy engines, automatic engine restart, multi-GNSS GPS with anti-jam features, long-range radio communications (10-150 km), and ISR sensor integration with infrared collection capabilities.
The related federal contract opportunity is a Sources Sought notice from the Department of the Air Force, specifically the 1st Expeditionary Theater Support Group, seeking market research responses by 12:00 PM Arabian Standard Time on 30 June 2025. Interested contractors must submit a white paper (maximum 7 pages) and a quad chart summarizing capabilities, along with company information, SAM.gov registration, past performance details, and business size classification. Responses should be electronically submitted to francis.dunn.1@us.af.mil, with the understanding that this is a market research effort and not a formal request for quotation, and the government will not compensate respondents for information provided.
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sUAS Preferred Specs
| Characteristic | Minimum | Desired | Notes |
| Payload Volume | 10 liters | 20 Liters | Ablility to hold an appropriate volume for payload (cameras, radios, sensors, batteries, etc.) |
| Payload Weight | 5.0 kg | 10 kg | Payload weight must not affect the the maximum amound of fuel for the UAS (payload must be independent of fuel) |
| Packing Size (1x UAS) | 98"L x 51"W x 48" H | 61"L x 44"W x 48" H | Ability to fit in a pre-built box w/at least 2 wheels, and 1x UAS must fit into pickup truck bed (multiple cases ok) |
| Packing Size (1x GCS) | 98"L x 51"W x 48" H | 61"L x 44"W x 48" H | Ability to fit in a pre-built box w/at least 2 wheels, and 1x GCS must fit into pickup truck bed (multiple cases ok) |
| MTOW | 250 kg | 25 kg | Ability to meet minimum takeoff weight |
| Max Takeoff / Landing | 3,000 ft | VTOL | Capability of taking off within 3,000ft at max gross weight. Rail or VTOL variants will be considered viable. |
| Range | 1260 km | 2500 km | Ability to meet minimum range |
| Endurance | 8 hours | 24 hour | Ability to meet minimum endurance |
| Speed | 40 mph | 120 mph | Ability to meet minimum speed while flying |
| Flight Ceiling | 9,000 ft MSL | 18,000 ft MSL | |
| Navigation Lights | Red/Green/White (ICAO) | + separate IR strobe and IR landing light | For safety of flight during night operations in civil airspace (desired IR lights for NVG takeoff/landing) |
| Payload Bus Power | 200 Watts (12V supply bus) | 2000 Watts (12V bus w/ varyiable UBECs installed ) | Ability for electric power to be supplied by alternator/high energy density fuel |
| Auto Engine Start | Yes | Yes | Ability for engine to start automatically for safety for operator and reduces chance of IFE |
| Engine | Fuel injected | Heavy Fuel injected or alternative energy | Any engine must be fuel injected and able to restart automatically in the air. If alternative energy propulsion system is used, UAS motor must be able to restart automatically in the air. |
| Ground Fueling system | Non-Proprietary/ Manual | Non-Proprietary/ Electrical fuel pump fuel & defuel | Designed for austere location fuel/defuel operations in extremely hot & sunny condictions using military 5-gal canisters or 55g barrel. |
| Barometer | Required | Required | Addition to ArduPilot Cube. |
| Lidar/Radar Altimeter | Radar Altimeter | LIDAR | Desired for UAS to be equipped with lidar to aid in Auto-Landing/takeoff |
| UAS instrumentation | Fuel, Engine, Battery | avionics bay temperature | Fuel level, Fuel Flow, Engine Temps such as cylinder head, battery temperature, avionics bay temperature |
| Maintenance Info | UAS/Avionics/Electrical wiring | ALL UAS/avionics/electrical wiring diagrams | Possess the ability for field maintenance & repair in austere environments by the end user with little to no vendor contact. |
| Flight Controller | MAVLINK-Based | MAVLINK with (WIN/A)TAK interface | Ability to utilize Open-source flight control firmware, Mission Planner preferred, (WIN/A)TAK interface preferred |
| GPS | COTS single antenna | Multi-GNSS CRPA/Anti-jam/Anit-spoof | Ability to be equipped with 1x COTS GPS - a multi-GNSS GPS. Anti-jam/Anti-spoof, mutli-GNSS GPS preferred |
| Alternative PNT Source | 1 COTS | Multiple redundant but complimentary systems | 1,000 ft hemispheric position, 2,000 ft/hr hemispheric drift - Alt PNT includes visnav, gravnav, magnav, cellnav, etc |
| Radio - LOS | 10 km omnidirectional w/FPV | 150km directional w/FPV for landing | Any frequency, this radio is the launch/recovery radio (platform C2) and must include FPV camera bandwidth (for landing) |
| Radio - BLOS Telemetry | 1260 km occasional | 2500 km streaming | Ability to provide ground station with platform telemetry |
| Radio - BLOS Payload | 1260 km occasional | 2500 km streaming | Ability to provide ground station with payload information, and able to transfer 10MB file within 2 mins. |
| Durability- moisture | Clear weather | All Weather | Ability to operate in clear weather conditions. |
| Durability- heat | 130 deg F ambient air | 200 deg F ambient air (storage) | Ability to withstand sustained temperatures up to at least 130F while stored in container. |
| Availability | 2x UAS & 1x GCS on hand | 12x UAS & 3x GCS on hand | |
| Production | 4x UAS / month in 90 days | 12x UAS / month in 30 days |
| Estimated Price - UAS w/case | If willing or able to provide price estimate. |
| Estimated Price - GCS w/case | If willing or able to provide price estimate. |
| Estimated Price - Training 1 crew | If willing or able to provide price estimate and schedule (how many days or weeks) to train 1x military crew to plan, operate, and maintain |
| Estimated Price - Spares | If willing or able to provide price estimate of 1x spares kit for UAS (1x engine, 1x each radio w/ antenna, 1x set landing gear, etc) |
Payload
| Characteristic | Minimum | Desired | Notes |
| ISR Sensor | Capability for COTS integration (space for mounting and line of sight on bottom of aircrft) | Integrated COTS ISR sensor meeting following Threshold or Objective capabilities | |
| ISR Collection Band | MWIR or LWIR | Multi-band combination of two or more of the following bands; SWIR, MWIR, LWIR, and VIS. | The primary collection band must be MWIR or LWIR and will be subject to the ISR sensor threshold and objective capabilities. |
| Infrared Noise Equivilent Temperature Difference | <40 mK | <30 mK | Ability to identify personnel and man made objects within a scene |
| Instantaneous Field of View (IFOV) per pixel | 0.5 mrad | 0.2 mrad | If IFOV is less than the diffraction limit of the optics, the diffraction limit will be used for this metric |
| Integration Time | < 1/100 second | < 1/500 second | The goal of this characteristic is to maximize imagery clarity with varying angular rates of a scene depending on collection altitude. |
| Power Requirements | ≤ 12V | ≤ 8V | |
| ISR Sensor Mounting | Static mounting pointing down through nader of aircraft | Gimballed with +/- 60 degs of elevation and +/- 180 degs of azmuth | Cable wrapping is acceptable as long as system has an automatic stop at azimuth limits |
| ISR Pointing Accuracy (Gimbal) | < 5 degs in Az | <1 deg in Az | Ability to perform calibration in the field and any external equipment required must be limited in size to be 1x person carry |
| Collection Media Type | Still Images | Still images and video of at least 30 FPS | Video must not be interpolated |
| ISR Sensor Field of View (FOV) | >30 degrees | >60 degrees | |
| Collection Metadata | Position, Heading, Sensor Az+El (Gimbal) | Position, Heading, Senzor Az+El, Alt, Target Position | |
| Image Stabilization | < 1x IFOV within integration time | < 0.05x IFOV within integration time | Stabilization can be achieved either external or internal to the optical system |
Estimated Price - Payload Only If willing or able to provide price estimate.
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