Commercial Bell 407 Helicopters in support of the MQ-8 Fire Scout Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS)

The Naval Air Systems Command has awarded a firm fixed price commercial contract to Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc. of Fort Worth, Texas, for the procurement of seven Bell 407 variant commercial helicopters. These aircraft are intended to support the MQ-8 Fire Scout Unmanned Aircraft System. The acquisition was conducted on a sole-source basis under the statutory authority of Title 10, U.S.C. Section 2304(c)(1) and Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, as the government determined that Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc. was the only responsible source capable of satisfying the agency requirements. This procurement is governed by Class Justification and Approval number 15-24511, which identifies the contractor as the sole provider for the necessary aircraft, technical data, and engineering support. The justification notes that utilizing alternative air vehicles would result in significant cost and schedule delays for the MQ-8 Fire Scout Program. The contract is associated with solicitation number N00019-17-NORFP-PMA-266-0143 and falls under NAICS code 336411.