Aircraft Defensive Electro-optical Protection Technologies (ADEPT)

The Air Force Research Laboratory seeks technical and cost proposals for Aircraft Defensive Electro-optical Protection Technologies (ADEPT), a two-technical-area program to develop pre-emptive or reactive countermeasure solutions—including expendable systems, directed energy, and novel developmental concepts—in the electro-optical spectrum to protect U.S. and allied aircraft in contested airspace, with proposals due November 9, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. EST. The procurement carries a classified TS/SCI/SAP classification sensitivity with restricted foreign participation.

Place of performance is Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The solicitation divides into two separate technical areas: Hardware & Executable Analysis of Threats (HEAT), valued at $13,695,000, emphasizing threat hardware and software exploitation to produce high-fidelity modeling inputs; and Advanced Countermeasure Engineering (ACE), valued at $60,938,000, focusing on laboratory and open-air testing, threat characterization, and digital threat model development. Total estimated call value is $74,633,000 over seven fiscal years (FY27–FY33). Period of performance spans 84 months: 81 months of technical performance plus 3 months for final reporting. The Air Force anticipates awarding two Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee completion contracts, one per technical area, with an anticipated award date of March 22, 2027.

Offerors may propose to one or both technical areas by submitting separate proposals. Technical/management proposals are limited to 15 pages for Technical Area 1 (HEAT) and 20 pages for Technical Area 2 (ACE), with statements of work limited to 10 pages per technical area. Proposals must be submitted via DoD SAFE; offerors must request the DoD SAFE link by November 6, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. EST. Cost/business proposals must be submitted in separate volumes valid for 180 days with detailed cost element breakdowns in Microsoft Excel format. Evaluation criteria weigh technical merit and cost realism in equal order of importance, categorizing proposals as either Selectable or Not Selectable. Offerors must submit a certified DD Form 2345 (Militarily Critical Technical Data Agreement), Certifications and Representations (Section K), and a Subcontracting Plan for efforts exceeding $900,000. The NAICS code is 541715, Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences. Amendments effective through October 22, 2026, have revised proposal page limits and added Q&A attachments. Recent Q&A guidance specifies two three-day annual trips for HEAT technical area cost estimation: one to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and one to Redstone Arsenal in Alabama.