SAM #FA2330_RFI_TACOS

Air Force Seeks Industry Input for Tactical ATC Command and Control System (TACOS)

This opportunity seeks industry input for a future Air Force acquisition of a Tactical Air Traffic Control (ATC) Command and Control (C2) System (TACOS): - Government Buyer: - Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), Electronic Systems Directorate, Aerospace Management Systems Division (ESA), Air Traffic Systems Branch (ESAA) Program Management Office, Hanscom Air Force Base - OEMs and Vendors: - No specific OEMs or vendors are named in the request - Products/Services Requested: - Modular, scalable, and interoperable expeditionary ATC/C2 system (TACOS) - No specific products, part numbers, or purchase quantities listed - Preference for COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf), GOTS (Government Off-The-Shelf), or enterprise solutions - Unique or Notable Requirements: - Rapid deployment, survivability, and resilience in contested environments - Sensor-agnostic data fusion and multi-path communications - Interoperability with joint and coalition networks - Integration with advanced platforms (e.g., Unmanned Aerial Systems, Collaborative Combat Aircraft) - Robust cybersecurity and advanced human-machine interfaces with AI/ML decision aids - Certifiable for operation in the National Airspace System (NAS) and compliant with FAA standards - Open architecture compliance, hardware/software standards, and high operational availability - Respondents must provide technical overviews, capability statements, and address how their solutions meet the detailed requirements

Description

1.0 Description

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only, issued as part of market research in accordance with (IAW) Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation Overhaul (RFO) Part 10. This is not a solicitation/Request for Proposal (RFP), a Request for Quotation (RFQ), an Invitation for Bids (IFB), or a solicitation, and no contract shall be resultant from this synopsis. Aerospace Management Systems Division (AFLCMC/ESA) will not pay respondents for information provided in response to this RFI. Participation is limited to contractors registered in the United States. Submissions from non-U.S. contractors will not be considered. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's (AFLCMC) Electronic Systems Directorate, Aerospace Management Systems Division (ESA), Air Traffic Systems Branch (ESAA) Program Management Office (PMO), located at Hanscom Air Force Base (AFB), Massachusetts, is requesting information from industry to assist in planning for the potential future acquisition of a Tactical Air Traffic Control (ATC) Command and Control (C2) System, hereafter referred to as TACOS.

Current USAF expeditionary ATC systems were designed for a more permissive operational environment and are ill-suited for modern, multi-domain warfare. Legacy systems are characterized by large size, weight, power, and personnel (SWaP-P) footprints; prolonged setup and teardown timelines; limited interoperability with joint and coalition C2 systems, tactical data links (TDLs), and modern sensor networks; and susceptibility to kinetic and non-kinetic threats, including electronic attack, cyber intrusion, and electromagnetic pulse (EMP). These limitations create unacceptable risk to air operations under the pacing challenge and the requirement to project airpower from dispersed, austere locations.

TACOS is envisioned as a critical enabler of the Department of the Air Force (DAF) Battle Network, providing the essential link between aircrew and the airfield environment across the full spectrum of operational environments — from permissive airspace to highly contested, denied areas of operation.  TACOS shall be a modular, scalable, and highly interoperable system that ingests and processes tactical data feeds from Battle Management Command and Control (BMC2), Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Weather (WX) networks, fusing them with traditional Air Traffic Control (ATC) processing to display a unified airspace awareness picture. This provides commanders the flexibility to tailor Airfield Operations (AO) ATC services to the specific warfighting mission and threat levels. Core attributes include agility and speed (rapid deployment, minimal airlift, setup and teardown by a small team in hours); survivability and resilience (operation through kinetic and non-kinetic attack, low probability of detection, and function in a communications-degraded or -denied environment); seamless interoperability across USAF, joint, and coalition sensors and C2 networks; and scalable mission command.

The operational requirement for TACOS is sponsored by Headquarters Air Force Flight Standards Agency (HQ AFFSA), the USAF lead agency for air traffic control, airfield management, and air traffic control and landing systems (ATCALS); acquisition is executed by AFLCMC/ESAA.

The information received will be used to inform the development of a potential future acquisition strategy. Solutions should be actionable within the next two (2) years. This RFI does not commit the Government to any contractual agreement.

2.0 Key System Capabilities

The desired TACOS solution must deliver an integrated, scalable suite of capabilities as a survivable, expeditionary, and interoperable C2 platform providing reliable ATC services in support of Agile Combat Employment (ACE). The system shall provide, at minimum, the following capabilities:

2.1  Expeditionary, Modular, and Mobile Design

The TACOS architecture shall be non-proprietary and adhere to a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) governed by a Government-owned system architecture, enabling rapid integration of third-party hardware and software while remaining sensor-agnostic across current and future data sources. Open, consensus-based standards shall govern the large majority of Government-defined Key Interfaces so that hardware and software can be decoupled, and cloud-ready software containers shall allow individual capability modules (including Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) decision aids) to be upgraded, replaced, or added without disturbing the rest of the system. The solution shall be lightweight, compact, and ruggedized for sustained operation in austere, expeditionary environments, and rapidly deployable and reconfigurable to satisfy the personnel, setup-time, and logistical-footprint demands of each operational configuration.

The system shall be inherently scalable, spanning both hardware and software, to support demand-varying configurations that range from a Low-Demand, single-operator, dismounted, man-portable setup to a High-Demand, multi-operator, shelter-based system, allowing commanders to delegate and optimize the configuration to mission need. Workstation capacity shall scale from a baseline of a few controller positions to several, and the equipment shall support rack-mount, pole-mount, and tabletop installations within an ATC tower as well as Mobile Tower, Landing Zone, and contingency-control roles. The system shall remain operable across the full spectrum of operating environments—from permissive airspace to contested and denied areas, and from austere landing zones to established main operating bases—without degradation of core ATC and C2 functions. Additionally, the system shall install within existing military or commercial structures and standard fixed and expedient shelters.

The system shall reflect a self-contained, transit-case architecture designed for a tightly bounded expeditionary envelope. When fully deployed, the system shall operate within a 20-by-20-foot footprint. For mobility, the entire system shall be transportable on a single 463L pallet for airlift, via rail, or by a single light tactical vehicle, while remaining ruggedized to survive standard transit shock and vibration stresses. To facilitate rapid tactical movement, individual transit cases shall remain within two-person lift limits. A trained crew of no more than four personnel shall be capable of rapidly deploying and retrograding the system.  To sustain operations away from fixed infrastructure, the system shall accept a wide range of Alternating Current (AC) and Direct Current (DC) power inputs, including Government-Off-The-Shelf (GOTS) generators, commercial grids, vehicle/aircraft power, solar arrays, and scavenged DC sources. The system shall automatically sense commercial power loss and transfer to organic generation without interrupting critical C2/ATC functions.

... (The rest of the document continues with similar detailed formatting for each section and list.)

View original listing