Pre-Production Contract for NOAA C-130J Aircraft

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO), Eastern Acquisition Division (EAD) and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operation (OMAO) using the procedures set forth in FAR Part 15, intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the pre-production of one C-130J aircraft, with an optional pre-production of a second C-130J to ensure that production planning, production slots, and long lead materials are secured in enough time to ensure production of the baseline (“green”) aircraft in adequate time to meet NOAA timelines.

The two (2) current NOAA WP-3D Hurricane Hunter aircraft are nearing their lifecycle end and ultimate decommission in approximately 2030; therefore, replacement aircraft are required by January 2028 to begin instrumentation and calibration, approximately a two year process. The need to have the first two (2) new aircraft online by 2030 to replace the WP-3D aircraft currently in the fleet is imperative. Without these assets online, the ability for NOAA to perform its hurricane missions would be severely, if not entirely, hampered. This would create a serious national security issue by the degradation of hurricane forecasting leading to a potential increase in loss of life and property during hurricane events.

A green C-130J aircraft is only produced by Lockheed Martin Corporation. While other companies can modify the green aircraft after production, no other company produces new C-130J aircraft, as the design is proprietary to Lockheed Martin Corporation. Therefore, the pre-production contract must be awarded to Lockheed Martin Corporation as there are no other companies in the world capable of the pre-production of a green C-130J aircraft.  The production contract for this effort will be a separate acquisition and will be handled via a separate notice and solicitation which will be posted to Sam.gov.

The North American Industry Classification System Code (NAICS) is 336411, Aircraft Manufacturing, with a corresponding size standard of 1,500 employees. This notice does not constitute a solicitation, Request for Proposal (RFP), Request for Quotation (RFQ), or an Invitation for Bid (IFB) and it does not restrict the Government in any way regarding its ultimate acquisition approach. However, if any other interested party believes that it can meet the requirements, it may submit a statement of capabilities, which if timely received, will be considered by NOAA. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement in the future. Evidence must be provided of ability to provide the required services. The capability statement and any other information furnished must be in writing and must contain material in sufficient detail to allow NOAA to determine if the party can meet all of the requirements. Capability statements and related materials must be e-mailed to Contracting Officer Jana Kolb at jana.kolb@noaa.gov by 2:00 PM ET on March 9, 2023.