KC135 Life Raft Securing Device
Closed Pre-Solicitation Posted
- Solicitation number
- KC135_LifeRaft_Securing_Device
- Agency
-
AFLCMC Tinker AFB
Lifecycle Management Center, Department of Defense
- Responses due
- Set-aside
- Total Small Business
Opportunity facts
- NAICS code
- 336413 Other Aircraft Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing
- Place of performance
- Tinker AFB, Oklahoma 73145, United States
- Points of contact
Notice details come from SAM.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The Department of the Air Force Materiel Command Lifecycle Management Center at Tinker Air Force Base intends to solicit design and implementation of standardized life raft securing devices for the KC-135 fleet, with responses due October 9, 2026. This procurement is set aside for Total Small Business.
The KC-135 currently relies on non-standard, field-expedient restraints—passenger seatbelts and cargo tie-down straps—to secure life rafts in forward stowage areas, creating dual safety vulnerabilities: unfamiliarity with varied tie-down methods during crew evacuation and unverified crashworthiness. The Air Force will eliminate the aft-right hatch raft position to reduce scope and cost. The requirement calls for development and implementation of a field-level Time Compliance Technical Order (TCTO) that standardizes the forward-left and forward-aft raft positions by replicating the engineering-approved, hard-mounted strap design already in use at the aft-left hatch location.
Work involves aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing (NAICS 336413, PSC 1680) and addresses critical crew safety during emergency operations. The Air Force seeks to balance risk mitigation with program cost efficiency through a modification effort of defined technical scope.
Notice text
The KC-135 fleet currently lacks engineering-approved, standardized methods for securing critical life-saving equipment, presenting a severe risk to crew safety during emergencies. While the raft position aft of the left overwing hatch utilizes secure, hard-mounted straps, the remaining stowage areas—forward of the left overwing hatch and forward of the aft hatch—rely on non-standard, field-expedient restraints such as passenger seatbelts or cargo tie-down straps attached to troop seat support bars. This lack of standardization introduces two critical vulnerabilities: it risks delaying crew evacuation times due to unfamiliarity with varied tie-down methods, and it leaves the crashworthiness of the rafts unverified by engineering authorities. To mitigate these safety risks while minimizing program cost and scope, the position aft of the right hatch will be eliminated from the aircraft configuration. Consequently, this modification effort seeks to develop and implement a field-level Time Compliance Technical Order (TCTO) to standardize and modify the remaining forward-left and forward-aft raft positions, replicating the robust, hard-mounted strap design currently utilized at the aft-left hatch location.
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