Melinda Stann

Melinda K. Stann serves as a Contract Specialist at the Naval Air Warfare Center Air Division, where she plays a pivotal role in executing complex acquisitions for advanced naval aviation systems. She manages the full lifecycle of contracts supporting the development, testing, and sustainment of mission-critical avionics, electronic warfare suites, communications systems, and aircraft subsystems. Her work directly enables the agency’s mission to maintain air superiority through technological innovation and fleet readiness. Stann routinely handles competitive and non-competitive procurements under FAR Part 15, with a focus on engineering services, research and development, and specialized manufacturing contracts requiring high technical rigor and compliance with DoD acquisition regulations. She maintains established working relationships with key industry partners including SABRE SYSTEMS, LLC, THE BOEING COMPANY, SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION, SYSTEMS PLANNING AND ANALYSIS, INC., and ONTIC ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING, INC. These partnerships reflect a blend of large prime contractors delivering integrated systems and specialized firms providing niche engineering and technical support. Stann’s procurement approach emphasizes performance-based contracting, technical evaluation panels, and risk mitigation strategies tailored to the unique demands of naval aviation modernization. While the majority of her acquisitions are conducted under open competition (85.3%), she actively supports small business participation through Total Small Business Set-Asides (11.8%) and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Set-Asides (2.9%), demonstrating a deliberate commitment to expanding the defense industrial base. Her socioeconomic contracting patterns align with DoD goals to foster innovation through diverse supplier engagement. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 541330 (Engineering Services) and 541712 (Research and Development in Physical and Engineering Sciences), reflecting her specialization in technical services for airborne sensor integration, mission system architecture, and aircraft subsystem sustainment. She frequently procures services related to systems engineering, flight test support, and avionics modernization, underscoring her deep domain expertise in naval aviation technology development.