Analysis of Alternatives Study for the Hurricane Research Platform Replacement for the NOAA WP-3D Orion

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) intends to issue a solicitation for an Analysis of Alternatives Study for the Hurricane Research Platform Replacement for the NOAA WP-3D Orion. The solicitation will be issued on or after November 17, 2014 and will be available on FBO.gov. The Government anticipates award of a single firm fixed-price contract as a result of the solicitation, but reserves the right to amend or cancel the pre-solicitation notice or solicitation at any time. The Government will seek competitive proposals utilizing full and open competition. The solicitation will establish the official due date and time for receipt of proposals.

The NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO), Aircraft Operations Center (AOC), located at MacDill Air Force Base, operates two WP-3D Orion aircraft. The priority missions of these aircraft are hurricane research and surveillance during the hurricane season, in addition to national priority atmospheric research support during the remainder of the year. These two aircraft will be undergoing a Service Life Extension (SLE) program to extend their operational service lives to 2030. It is the goal of OMAO to have a replacement platform operational by 01 January 2028 to ensure a smooth transition to the next generation NOAA Weather Research platform. The Analysis of Alternatives study will evaluate and analyze the potential current and future platforms capable of the full range of missions currently being performed by the NOAA WP-3D, the current and future needs for in situ and remotely sensed airborne observations, as well as current and future developments in atmospheric and oceanographic sensors, instrumentation packages and sensor platforms.