Rachel W. Malatesta

Rachel W. Malatesta 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. Her responsibilities encompass the full lifecycle of contract management—from requirements definition and source selection to award and administration—for mission-critical avionics, electronic warfare subsystems, and aircraft integration technologies. She supports the agency’s strategic imperatives in modernizing airborne sensor suites and sustaining legacy platforms, ensuring compliance with federal acquisition regulations while delivering technical solutions that enhance fleet readiness and air superiority. Her portfolio primarily consists of firm-fixed-price and cost-reimbursement contracts for high-technology hardware and engineering services. Malatesta maintains consistent 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 collaborations reflect a focus on established defense primes and specialized systems integrators capable of delivering sophisticated aerospace components and mission-critical software. Her procurement approach emphasizes technical rigor, performance-based outcomes, and long-term sustainment planning, fostering stable, performance-driven vendor partnerships grounded in deep domain expertise. Her contracting activity reflects a strong preference for full and open competition, with 100% of her awards issued under no set-aside categories. This underscores a mission-driven focus on accessing the broadest possible industrial base to meet demanding technical requirements, rather than prioritizing socioeconomic set-asides. While small business participation is not formally mandated in her portfolio, she remains attentive to opportunities for qualified small firms to compete as subcontractors within prime contracts. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 334511 for search, detection, and aeronautical systems, followed by 336413 and 336412 for aircraft components and engine subsystems. She specializes in procuring integrated avionics, navigation and guidance systems, radar and electronic warfare equipment, and auxiliary aircraft hardware—domains requiring stringent military specifications and rigorous test and evaluation protocols.