Ice Exercise (ICEX) 2022, Ice Camp Air Charter Services to the Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) Detachment Arctic Submarine Laboratory

USTRANSCOM Directorate of Acquisition, Contract Airlift Division, is issuing Request for Proposal (RFP) HTC711-22-R-CC01 for Ice Exercise (ICEX) 2022, Ice Camp Air Charter Services to the Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) Detachment Arctic Submarine Laboratory. All aircraft will conduct operations from Deadhorse, Alaska Airport (ICAO: PASC, IATA: SCC), and support an ice camp approximately 150 to 225 nautical miles from the airport. All aircraft must be equipped with GPS, navigation, and communication equipment. The ice camp will have VHF and Iridium communications, heated shelters, electrical power, real-time weather observations and forecasts, berthing, and food as required. Air Operators are expected to procure fuel for their aircraft. Resulting contracts for Air Charter Services will be contingent upon air operators’ approval from the DoD Commercial Airlift Review Board (CARB). Air Operators do not need to be DoD approved to submit proposals for chartered air services, but they will need to go through the DoD approval process and get DoD approval in order to receive a contract and conduct the work.

The projected period of performance will be 17 February through 21 March 2022. The projected dates, service periods, service durations, and flight hours are notional and subject to change pending planning during the duration of the contract. The applicable North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) Code is 481211-Nonscheduled Chartered Passenger Air Transportation.

Interested contractors are not required to provide all services in the PWS. Air operators may propose to meet any of the aircraft requirement in the PWS.  No hard copies of the solicitation will be issued. All responsible sources may submit a proposal, which shall be considered by the Agency. Be advised that all interested parties must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) Database in order to receive a contract award (https://www.sam.gov). All comments should be addressed in writing to Mr. Matt Bowen, Contracting Officer, via email: matthew.r.bowen4.civ@mail.mil.  Please provide comments by 12:00pm CST, December 17, 2021.

Responses (R1 through R9) to questions (Q1 through Q9), received on the 2020 Draft PWS, are provided as follows:

Q1: Can the General purpose Aircraft (Personnel and Cargo) (CLIN 0001 in 2022) be flown with a single engine turbine aircraft like a Cessna Caravan, or are the fixed wing aircraft required to be twin engine aircraft? We believe requirements limit it to twin engine aircraft.

R1: The DOD Commercial Airlift Review Board has the authority to waive the twin-engine aircraft requirement. Single Engine aircraft submissions are welcome, but justification is recommended (i.e., provide considerations and a case for why single engine is safer for this scenario).

Q2: Does the air carrier have to be a DoD approved air carrier prior to performance of the task and or contract issuance?

R2: Yes, they must be DoD approved prior to flight operations (task) and contract issuance. Air Carriers that are not DoD approved at the time of solicitation response must go through the DoD approval process if they are tentatively selected.

Q3: Does the air carrier have to have experience landing on moving ice floes, or can the experience be held by each individual pilot that will be operating the flights for the air carrier?  As an example, previous pilots who have the experience flying and landing / take off on moving ice floes with other air operators, but now may fly for a new air carrier who may wish to fly ICEX (new carrier hires pilots who have flown on this work in past years).

R3: The Air Carrier does not need experience landing on drifting ice floes. Experience held by pilots is sufficient.

Q4: Please confirm that it is USTRANSCOM’s intent that one company fulfill all Air Charter Services (3.1.1-3 / CLINS 0001-0004), thus requiring the company to be CARB approved to support with both FW and RW aircraft capable of meeting all PWS requirements.

R4: USTRANSCOM Acquisition (TCAQ) will allow offerors to propose on any number of CLINs, i.e., one or more. An offeror will not be required to offer on all CLINs.

Q5: Is there an incumbent contractor for this requirement, or is this a new requirement?

R5: This is a new requirement.  There is not an incumbent.  It is similar to ICEX 2020.

Q6: Will there be a mobilization/demobilization CLIN?

R6: All costs incidental to the requirement, including costs to mobilize and demobilize, will be included in the per hourly fixed price rate offered by the carrier. Each CLIN will provide a minimum number of hours guarantee for the offeror.

Q7. Will USTRANSCOM provide historical pricing from recent years’ operations, in order to help contractors understand USTRANSCOM’s budget for this operation?

R7. We will not provide historical pricing.

Q8. Will this requirement be solicited as a standalone solicitation, or will it be competed under an existing USTRANSCOM IDIQ?

R8. This requirement will be stand-alone.

Q9. Will evaluation under this solicitation be Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) or Best Value? How will past performance be weighted?

R9. It will be Best Value Continuum. The evaluation criteria are provided in the solicitation.