Commercial Aviation Services, Gulfstream V (GV) Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR)

Request for Information (RFI) - Commercial Aviation Services, Gulfstream V (GV) Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR)The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Ames Research Center (ARC) is hereby soliciting information from potential sources for Commercial Aviation Services, Gulfstream V (GV) Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR).  NASA ARC is seeking capability statements from all interested parties, including all socioeconomic categories of Small Businesses and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)/Minority Institutions (MI) for the purposes of determining the appropriate level of competition and/or small business subcontracting.  The Government reserves the right to consider a Small, 8(a), Women-owned (WOSB), Service-Disabled Veteran (SD-VOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Women-owned Small Business (EDWOSB) or HUBZone business set-aside based on responses received.Mission Background:The Airborne Science

Program within the NASA Science Mission Directorate supports the science community by enabling access to aircraft to meet project or mission requirements. The Program funds maintenance and operations of government unique, highly modified aircraft at several NASA field centers. Not every instrument or concept requires these high value assets to be owned and operated by NASA. The Program also encourages the use of commercial aviation services for projects where commercial aviation services are available and proven to be safe and reliable.The current UAVSAR program run by the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is comprised of three disparate Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) antennas (L-, P-, and Ka-band) that are housed in large centerline structural pods flown beneath NASA Gulfstream-III (G-III) aircraft.  The G-IIIs have been heavily modified with a pylon/bomb rack system to accommodate the SAR pods.  The UAVSAR program is instrumental in collecting critical science data to support studies in observing surface deformation from volcano and earthquake fault activities, vegetation structure and soil moisture changes, levee health, oil spills, flooding, detecting underground structures and subsurface changes, and mapping land surface topography.  Annual flight hours associated with the UAVSAR program have averaged approximately 400 but has been as high as 800 – 900.The current arrangement of one G-III with one pod/SAR has been flying for nearly fifteen years, and NASA JPL has been investigating Next Generation (NG) concepts to enhance science data collection and efficiency.  Two important goals of the UAVSAR NG are to fly multiple SAR antennas on a single aircraft that has an increase in range over the existing G-IIIs.  UAVSAR NG is interested in flying a single SAR antenna installed on the fuselage as well as two SAR antennas installed inside a canoe fairing on the bottom of the aircraft.In addition to the UAVSAR NG program, NASA has interest in remote sensing applications using instruments to collect data through nadir portals installed on GV aircraft.  The Airborne Science Program funds and supports a NASA GV aircraft configured in such a manner, but this asset (N95NA) is shared with the astronaut program.  It is not dedicated to science.Summary:The purpose of this RFI is to seek commercial aircraft providers that have (or would purchase) a GV (or aircraft with similar range) that the provider would:Modify to address UAVSAR NG goalsModify with the NASA GV nadir portal installationMaintain/operate in support of NASA’s Science mission.Information Requested:Responses to this RFI should include:Organization Information:Name and addressPoint(s) of contact (POC) to include email address and phone number(s)EUI and Cage CodeTechnical responses should address the following issues:What aircraft would be available for use?Does the provider currently own the aircraft, or would it need to be purchased?If the aircraft were to be purchased, how many months would the provider need to acquire the aircraft.Where would the aircraft be based?Description of the provider’s maintenance and operation capability, capacity, and history.UAVSAR NG is a one-of-a-kind mission whereas the nadir portal installation has potential mission uses from organizations other than NASA, like the commercial market for King Air and Twin Otter aircraft.  Would the provider intend to use the aircraft for NASA-only missions or seek to lower operating costs over a wider customer base?Responses should detail all current FAA PART Certifications held. If NASA would provide a Gulfstream-IV aircraft, would the provider maintain and operate the aircraft via a Government-Owned, Contractor-Operated (GOCO) model?If recent work has been conducted for another Federal Agency, please provide the type of aircraft operated/maintained, location of operations, program executed, flights hours flown per year, and a rough order of magnitude cost. Please also provide the Government point of contact information.Submission Instructions and Information:Responses to this RFI must be submitted to u.t.dickson@nasa.gov no later than 5pm Pacific Time on the date specified. Include the following subject line in the submission: “RFI 80ARC022UTD01, GV UAVSAR.” Submissions shall not exceed 15 pages and should be submitted in Microsoft WORD, POWERPOINT, OR PDF Format.  Attachments should not exceed 10MB. In the event the information in your response is proprietary, it shall include the proper markings. Responses will not be shared outside the government.Following receipt and review of the initial submission, as part of its market research, NASA may conduct one-on-one meetings with respondents. These meetings will allow for exchange of information and will provide an opportunity for potential offerors to provide feedback on the Governments preliminary requirements and acquisition approach.This announcement does not constitute a Request for Proposal. Please do not request a copy of the solicitation as one does not exist at this time. This RFI is for informational and planning purposes and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. This RFI is subject to review or cancellation at any time. The Government will not pay for information submitted in response to this request and respondents will not be notified of the results. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized on https:// sam.gov. It is the potential offeror’s responsibility to monitor these sites for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at: https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/Procurement-Ombuds-Comp-Advocate-Listing.pdf.