Melissa H Kasek, Deputy Chief of Contracts

Melissa H. Kasek, Deputy Chief of Contracts for FA8823 Sustainment MCPNT SSC/PKL within the Department of the Air Force, leads the strategic acquisition of critical aerospace and space-based sustainment services essential to national defense. She oversees the procurement of research, development, and technical support for guided missile systems, satellite communications, global positioning infrastructure, and command and control platforms. Her role ensures the operational readiness and modernization of high-priority space and air domain capabilities through complex, mission-critical contract actions aligned with Air Force Sustainment Center objectives. She manages full lifecycle acquisitions from requirements validation to contract closeout, with a focus on long-term sustainment and technology insertion. Kasek’s contracting portfolio is supported by a broad network of defense contractors and research institutions specializing in aerospace engineering, systems integration, and space domain awareness. While no single contractor dominates her award profile, she consistently engages firms with proven expertise in classified aerospace sustainment, signal processing, and satellite systems modernization. Her working relationships emphasize technical proficiency, security clearance readiness, and past performance in high-consequence environments, fostering partnerships with both prime contractors and specialized subcontractors capable of supporting classified and sensitive programs. Kasek’s office maintains a 100% non-set-aside procurement posture, reflecting the specialized, classified, and mission-critical nature of the systems under sustainment. This approach prioritizes technical capability and national security imperatives over socioeconomic set-asides, with no current use of 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB programs. While small business participation is not formally incentivized, vendors must still demonstrate full compliance with federal acquisition regulations and cybersecurity requirements. Her primary focus is on NAICS 541720, encompassing research and development in the social sciences and humanities, which in this context supports advanced systems analysis, operational modeling, human factors engineering, and decision-support architecture development for space and missile sustainment. She procures technical services that enhance system reliability, lifecycle management, and interoperability across legacy and next-generation platforms, requiring deep domain expertise in aerospace systems engineering and defense R&D methodologies.