CSO Army Aviation Training_21 Nov 2025 FINAL.pdf

UNCLASSIFIED

UNCLASSIFIED

UNITED STATES ARMY

COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS OPENING (CSO)

FOR

AVIATION TRAINING SOLUTIONS

W9113M25SC0060

21 November 2025

UNCLASSIFIED

Table of Contents

1. AUTHORITY

2. GENERAL INFORMATION

3. BACKGROUND

4. CSO APPROACH AND OVERVIEW

5. POINTS OF CONTACT

6. SUBMISSION INFORMATION

7. AWARD GUIDELINES & ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

8. DEFINITIONS

9. ATTACHMENTS

U.S. Army Contracting Command – Redstone Arsenal

1. Authority

Contracting Officers may acquire innovative commercial items, technologies, or services using a competitive procedure called a Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) in accordance with (IAW) 10 U.S.C. 3458. Under a CSO, the Department of Defense (DoD) may competitively select proposals received in response to a general solicitation, similar to a broad agency announcement, based on a review of proposals by scientific, technological, or other subject-matter expert peers. Use of a CSO IAW DFARS Subpart 212.70 is considered to be a competitive procedure for the purposes of 10 U.S.C. 221 and FAR 6.102. Finally, Contracting Officers shall treat items, technologies, and services acquired using a CSO as commercial products and commercial services. Contracts or agreements under this authority shall be fixed-price, including fixed-price incentive fee contracts.

Awards issued under CSOs include but are not limited to the following award instruments: FAR contracts under FAR Part 12 Commercial Procedures; any fixed price, or fixed price incentive contract type specified under FAR Part 16; and non‐FAR agreements such as transaction agreements under 10 U.S.C. 4022 and 10 U.S.C. 4023; for the Army and/or its customers that are directly relevant to enhancing the effectiveness of training, curriculum development, integration of innovation in training methodologies, demonstration of capabilities and evidence of mastery of basic aviation operation abilities to support Army modernization priorities and improve readiness.

The Army intends to select solutions that demonstrate the greatest potential to achieve its missions. This CSO is maximizing the following existing authorities, either as a single authority or a combination of the authorities below:

10 U.S.C. §4022 – Authority of the Department of Defense to carry out certain prototype projects 10 U.S.C. §4023 – Procurement for Experimental Purposes 10 U.S.C. §3458 – Authority to acquire innovative commercial products and commercial services using general solicitation competitive procedures / DFARS 212.70 – Defense Commercial Solutions Opening

Offerors are informed that ONLY a warranted Army Contracting/Agreements Officer (not a Contracting Officer Representative or other personnel) may contractually bind the Army to any award issued as a result of this CSO. The Army shall not be obligated to pay for work performed by an Offeror unless a warranted Contracting/Agreements Officer has signed an award, in writing, agreeing that the Army shall pay and what the Army shall receive. The Army does not fund preparation of solution briefs/proposals, or support work efforts or tasks that are inferred from discussions.

2. General Information

Issuing Agency: U.S. Army Contracting Command – Redstone Arsenal

Agencies Capable of Issuing Contracts/Agreements: U.S. Army (Army) Users and all other DoD organizations.

Period of Availability: This CSO will remain open until canceled by the Army. Calls for Solutions (C4S) will specify individual response times and requirements.

Description of Program: This solicitation aims to support the Army Mission by delivering commercially innovative solutions to address Areas of Interest (AOI) or specific C4S’s in the means and methods of training aviators for the U.S. DoD.

Federal Agency Name and Contracting Officer Address: Army Contracting Command – Redstone Arsenal. Bldg. 5303, Sparkman Complex, Redstone Arsenal, AL 35898

3. Background:

The Army has identified the following needs: (1) to rapidly train and qualify aviators in all platforms;

(2) to transform aviation training to improve pilot proficiency by using the latest commercial practices and technology; and (3) to grow the aviation industrial base to better support the Army.

This solicitation aims to provide the Army with access to innovative solutions enabling the Army to evolve quickly and maintain a competitive edge over adversaries.

4. CSO Approach and Overview

Applicable NAICS Code and Associated Description:

NAICS Description 611512 FLIGHT TRAINING (Primary)

488190 OTHER SUPPORT ACTIVITIES FOR AIR TRANSPORTATION

541611 ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT AND GENERAL

MANAGEMENT CONSULTING SERVICES

611430 PROFESSIONAL AND MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT TRAINING

611519 OTHER TECHNICAL AND TRADE SCHOOLS

Classified Information: Access to unclassified sensitive or classified information is not anticipated for awards under this CSO. Offerors are encouraged to submit unclassified responses to simplify and expedite reviews and responses by the Army.

Proprietary Information: Solution briefs, presentations, and proposals containing data that is not to be disclosed to the public for any purpose or use by the Army except for evaluation purposes shall include the following general disclaimer on the cover page:

“This [select one: solution brief, Presentation, or Proposal] includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the government, except to non-government personnel for evaluation purposes, and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed - in whole or in part - for any purpose other than to evaluate this submission. If, however, an agreement is awarded to this Offeror as a result of - or in connection with - the submission of this data, the government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent agreed upon by both parties in the resulting agreement. This restriction does not limit the government's right to use information contained in this data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction are contained in sheets [insert numbers or other identification of sheets]”

Responses should clearly mark (header or footer) portions of business plans and/or technical information that are to be protected from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) disclosure. Codified at 5 U.S.C. §552(b), FOIA provides that certain types of information (i.e. trade secrets and commercial or financial information) are exempt from the general rule that an agency shall make available to the public the information described in 5 U.S.C. §552(a).

NOTE: Foreign-Owned businesses may independently submit a solution or do so as part of a teaming arrangement with one or more United States-owned businesses. However, the ability to obtain an award based upon a submission may depend upon the ability of the Foreign-Owned business to obtain necessary clearances and approvals to obtain prescribed information.

Commercial Items: All items, technologies, and services acquired using this CSO will be treated as commercial items. The Army encourages proposals that span a wide spectrum of innovative technical and business solutions.

SAM.gov: Coordination and communication between offerors and the Army will be conducted using SAM.gov or alternate system.

DoDSafe.gov: The Army reserves the right to use DoDSafe.gov for coordination of receipt of Solution Briefs, Full Written Commercial Solutions Proposals, and any other documents related to the solicitation as needed.

Other Systems: The Army reserves the right to adopt the usage of other systems as they become available. Coordination and communication specifics shall be identified at the individual C4S level.

Notice of Funding: All funding will be provided at the time of award, not at the CSO level, regardless of the pathway pursued.

UNCLASSIFIED

5. Points of Contact:

Questions regarding the content of this CSO must be addressed to the Contracting Officer. Attn:

Michael A. Metje; email; michael.a.metje.civ@army.mil; work phone: (520) 674-7936.

6. Submission Information:

Responses to this CSO may be submitted against an Area of Interest (AOI) or a C4S. Submissions against the AOI shall be submitted to the POC listed for that AOI. Calls for Solutions will have POC information and submission instructions provided within the announcement.

Area of Interest (AOI) Provides a flexible and open-ended opportunity for industry partners to submit solution briefs addressing any of the identified Area of Interests. This aspect of the Open Solicitation is designed to identify and bridge gaps in mission-critical capabilities by inviting innovative solutions from the private sector. The purpose is to encourage a wide range of responses that can enhance and support the example areas, fostering collaboration and leveraging cutting-edge technologies and methodologies to meet evolving operational needs. The Areas of Interest along with submission POCs are defined in Attachment 001.

Call for Solutions (C4S) Provides an opportunity for industry partners to submit innovative solutions in response to a DoD issued C4S under any Area of Interest. Calls for Solutions aim to pinpoint and address critical gaps in essential capabilities by welcoming creative proposals from private sector entities. The C4S will identify how to submit a response as well as specific timelines for that requirement.

Assessments and Submission Format The evaluation and assessment procedures for CSO submissions are outlined in Attachment 002.

Formatting instructions for each of the AOI assessment phases are outlined in Attachments 003 through 006. Call for Solutions submissions are intended to follow the same overall structure as the CSO but may differ depending on the nature of the solution. Please read the specific evaluation and assessment procedures for each C4S for specific procedures and timelines. Debriefing instruction for C4S submissions shall be specified in the C4S.

7. Award Guidelines & Eligibility Requirements

Solutions evaluated as having technical merit, importance to agency programs and having funding to support the solution may receive a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) and/or Firm Fixed Price Incentive (FFPI) award in accordance with FAR Part 12 Acquisition of Commercial Items or other authorities such as 10 U.S.C. 4022 or 10 U.S.C. 4023. The Contracting Officer reserves the right to negotiate directly with the Offeror on the terms and conditions prior to execution of the resulting award, including payment terms, and will execute the contract or agreement on behalf of the Army.

mailto:michael.a.metje.civ@army.mil

a. Award eligibility requirements.

i. An Offeror shall be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) with a valid

Unique Entity ID (UEI) prior to submitting their Solutions Briefs and Quad Charts. Offerors are advised to commence SAM registration upon responding to a C4S or AOI announcement.

ii. An Offeror shall register in the prescribed Army invoice system (ex. Wide Area Work Flow) within 10 days of the award.

iii. The proposed solution shall meet all the technical requirements and schedules as requested by the Army.

iv. An Offeror shall be determined to be responsible by the Contracting Officer and must not be suspended or debarred from award by the Federal Government nor be prohibited by Presidential Executive Order and/or law from receiving an award.

b. Security Clearances. If awarded a contract or an Other Transaction (OT) under the procedures of this open solicitation, the Offeror will be responsible for providing personnel with appropriate security clearances to ensure compliance with Government security regulations. The Offeror shall fully cooperate on all security checks and investigations by furnishing requested information to verify the Offeror employee's eligibility for any required clearance.

The Army will determine the personnel security clearance and/or facility clearance requirements for the effort based on the offeror's proposed solution (e.g., data, integration with supporting DoD Infrastructure, architecture). The Army will provide additional details regarding the personnel security clearance and/or facility clearance requirements in the appropriate Phase.

c. Security Requirements and Classification. Responses under this open solicitation shall be unclassified. Any security requirements and security classification specifications will be determined and requested at the appropriate phase in Section 4 above. If the Offeror requires classification, please contact the email identified in CSO Base Document, Section 5 – Points of Contact.

d. Offeror Incurred Evaluation Costs. The Army will not reimburse Offerors for any costs incurred while participating in the open solicitation process.

Additionally, the Army will not consider the costs associated with participating in open solicitation process as allowable charges and as such, costs shall not be included within the ROM or any pricing information.

e. Payment Obligations. All payment obligations of the Army shall be subject to receiving appropriations from Congress for the purpose, time, and amount of the obligation. Only contracting officers have authority to bind the Army to the extent of the authority delegated to them.

UNCLASSIFIED

NOTE: The Army reserves the right to amend this CSO as necessary. Offerors should monitor (www.sam.gov) for amendment postings to this CSO.

8. Definitions

i. “Commercial Solutions Opening” (CSO) is a competitive procedure contracting officers may use to acquire innovative commercial items, technologies, or services.

ii. “Call For Solutions” (C4S) is a specific call for a defined solution issued under the broader CSO and is submitted in accordance with the specific C4S instructions

iii. “Commercial Solution Proposal” (CSP): is a commercial proposal that is submitted in response to an Area of interest or C4S that is governed by a CSO. CSPs may be requested as a result of solution briefs and/or presentations/presentations.

iv. “Innovative” means —

a. any technology, process, or method, including research and development, that is new as of the date of submission of a proposal; or

b. any application that is new as of the date of submission of a proposal of a technology, process, or method existing as of such date.

9. Attachments:

- 001: Areas of Interest (AOI)

- 002: AOI Evaluation Methodology

- 003: Phase I – CSO AOI Quad Chart Template

- 004: Phase I – CSO AOI Solutions Brief Format and Instructions

- 005: Phase II – CSO AOI Presentation Format

- 006: Phase III – CSO AOI Commercial Solution Proposal Format http://www.sam.gov/