Feasibility of Use of NASA JSC C9 Aircraft If It Were To Be Furnished As Government Furnished Equipment
FEASIBITY OF USE OF NASA JSC C9 AIRCRAFT IF IT WERE TO BE FURNISHED AS GOVT FURNISHED EQUIP.
Synopsis – Mar 28, 2013
Attachments 1 and 2 – Posted on Mar 28, 2013
General Information
Solicitation Number: NNJ13ZBR009L
Posted Date: Mar 28, 2013
FedBizOpps Posted Date: Mar 28, 2013
Recovery and Reinvestment Act Action: No
Original Response Date: Apr 19, 2013
Current Response Date: Apr 19, 2013
Classification Code: V — Transportation, travel, and relocation services
NAICS Code: 488190
Set-Aside Code:
Contracting Office Address
NASA/Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, Houston Texas, 77058-3696, Mail Code: BR
Description
This notice issued by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC), Houston, Texas is a Request for Information (RFI) to determine the feasibility of utilizing NASA/JSC’s C-9 Aircraft if it were to be furnished as Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) for various missions.
NASA’s C-9 aircraft is currently configured for and certified by NASA for microgravity flights. Microgravity flights provide a unique “reduced gravity” or “zero-g” environment for microgravity research (in areas such as fluid physics, combustion, material sciences, and life sciences), engineering development (for the International Space Station and other space hardware programs) and astronaut flight crew training.
NASA’s C-9 aircraft is operated as a public use aircraft. Specific information related to Public Use Aircraft is as follows:
Public Use Aircraft
Public law requires that any aircraft used by NASA to conduct aeronautical research be operated as a “Public Use” aircraft. NASA is therefore responsible to ensure the overall safety of the Contractor’s aircraft operations and maintenance. The Contractor shall operate and maintain the aircraft per NASA’s aircraft safety and mission assurance standards and in accordance with the NASA approved maintenance program for the aircraft. The NASA maintenance program is substantially the same as a commercial program of graduated maintenance, but with additional inspections and standards appropriate to the NASA mission. As a Public Use aircraft, NASA may approve any deviations as needed for NASA research or support missions in accordance with Public Use limitations and opportunities.
NASA’s C-9 aircraft is currently hangared at the Ellington Field NASA Facility in Houston, located near the Johnson Space Center.
General information on the aircraft and requirements for the current mission, microgravity services, are included as Attachment 1. A general description of the configuration and capabilities of NASA’s C-9 is included as Attachment 2.
Interested parties having the required specialized capabilities to meet the requirements must submit a capability statement. All maintenance and operational actions required to support the microgravity service mission and other missions that could be provided by the GFE aircraft should be addressed in the capability statement.
The Capability Statement should address the following:
1. Does your organization have the capability to provide the services utilizing the GFE Aircraft? If so, please describe your capabilities and performance history.
2. How would you manage a microgravity program including maintenance and operation of the aircraft; customer support; and payload integration?
3 What are the risks and rewards that would be shared by the Government and industry for providing the aircraft as GFE?
4. What, if any, are the barriers to utilizing the GFE Aircraft? Include how you would eliminate or mitigate potential barriers to utilizing the GFE Aircraft as other than a Public Aircraft.
5. Considering the aircraft is a Public Aircraft, what other missions could you support and how? Include ideas and recommendations on how the GFE Aircraft might be utilized.
6. What, if anything, would you require from NASA in order to provide microgravity services and other proposed services using the GFE Aircraft?
7. What other recommendations or suggestions do you have on how to utilize the GFE Aircraft?
Responses must include the following:
1. Name and address of firm and the name of the author of the suggestions.
2. Size of business; average annual revenue for the past three years and number of employees.
3. Whether the firm is a large business, Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, HUBZone Small Business, Women Owned Small Business, Veteran Owned Small Business, Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, or one of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities/Minority Institutions.
4. Number of years in business.
5. Affiliate information: parent company, joint venture partners and potential teaming partners.
In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The Government is under no obligation to issue a solicitation or to award any contract on the basis of this RFI.
No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps and on the NASA Acquisition Internet Service. It is the potential offeror’s responsibility to monitor these sites for the release of any solicitation or synopsis. This notice does not constitute a Request for Proposal, Invitation for Bid, or Request for Quotation, and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to enter into a contract. This document is for information purposes only to allow industry the opportunity to submit ideas and recommendations on the feasibility of utilizing the GFE NASA/JSC C-9 Aircraft to provide microgravity flight support and/or other services.
NASA will not affirmatively release any information received in response to this RFI to the public, but may use information received in developing the best approach for a contract strategy. Any information submitted in response to this RFI that is marked as “Confidential Commercial or Financial Information” will be considered as voluntarily submitted in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act.
Point of Contact
Name: Alice J. Pursell
Title: Contracting Officer
Phone: 281-483-9027
Fax: 281-483-4066
Email: alice.j.pursell@nasa.gov
Name: Nancy S. Robb
Title: Contract Specialist/Contracting Officer
Phone: 281-483-9044
Fax: 281-483-4066
Email: nancy.s.robb@nasa.gov
