USTRANSCOM is assessing the availability of sources to provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, maintenance, supervision, documentation and other items and services necessary to support the Undersea Warfighting Development Center Detachment Arctic Submarine Laboratory by providing air charter services to the drifting ice camp. Interested Air Operators are not required to provide all services in the PWS. Air operators may propose to meet any one of the aircraft requirements in the PWS. CLINs 0001 through 0004 are as follows:
CLIN 0001 Ski-Wheel Equipped Aircraft #1 (Pioneering Landings, General Purpose)
Contractor shall conduct Pioneering Landings. The Pioneering Landing flight is the aircraft that conducts the initial landing on the sea-ice; there is no person on the ice at this time, no physically measured ice thickness, and no groomed runway. The plane may use wheels, skis, or a combination and have endurance minimum of five hours to travel to various ice floes selected by the Navy through satellite imagery analysis, approximately 125 NM to 200 NM from Deadhorse Airport (PASC/SCC) in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. The aircraft must be able to operate without a groomed runway. The aircraft operator and pilot must have experience with Pioneering Landings. The aircraft must be able to take off and land on the sea-ice in under 2000 feet but a distance of 1500 feet or less is highly preferred. It is anticipated that this aircraft will support up to five planned Pioneering Landings on drifting sea ice to conduct pioneering efforts to select a suitable location to build an ice camp. It is expected that the aircraft will remain on the sea-ice for approximately 1 – 2 hours during Pioneering Flights to conduct ice surveys.
The aircraft shall accommodate at least the pilot and four passengers during Pioneering Landing flights. The experienced pilot will select a suitable landing site on the ice floe with guidance and concurrence from Operation Ice Camp personnel. Pilot must be capable of landing the aircraft on first year sea ice. Passengers will carry approximately 250 lbs. of ice auger equipment and emergency survival gear. Aircraft capacity to support at least 2000 lbs. payload while in ski-wheel configuration with 200 NM range (i.e., 200 NM from airport to sea ice and then 200 NM from the sea ice back to the airport without refueling) is required. Ability to take extra fuel and refuel on the drifting sea ice is preferred (up to 100 gallons of fuel).
After the pioneering stage, the ice runway will be built, and these aircraft will continue to support the ice camp by utilizing the ice runway. The ski-wheel configuration is still required throughout the duration of the period of performance as a contingency for ice breakups where landing on ungroomed ice may be required until a new ice runway is built. When operating from a runway, the aircraft must be able to operate from a 1500 ft. compacted snow or ice runway for both takeoff and landings with a payload of at least 2000 lbs. and seating capability for at least nine passengers. Aircraft must be able to support at least two round trips to the ice camp each day; three round trips per day capability is preferred assuming the ice camp is 225 nautical miles from Deadhorse Airport.
Total Projected Service Period: 22 February – 25 March 2024
Projected Flight Hours: 157 total flight hours
Minimum Flight Hours: 118 total flight hours
CLIN 0002 Ski-Wheel Equipped Aircraft #2 (Pioneering Landings, General Purpose)
Contractor shall conduct Pioneering Landings. The Pioneering Landing flight is the aircraft that conducts the initial landing on the sea-ice; there is no person on the ice at this time, no physically measured ice thickness, and no groomed runway. The plane may use wheels, skis, or a combination and have endurance minimum of five hours to travel to various ice floes selected by the Navy through satellite imagery analysis, approximately 125 NM to 200 NM from Deadhorse Airport (SCC) in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. The aircraft must be able to operate without a groomed runway. The aircraft operator and pilot must have experience with Pioneering Landings. The aircraft must be able to take off and land on the sea-ice in under 2000 feet but a distance of 1500 feet or less is highly preferred. It is anticipated that this aircraft will support up to five planned Pioneering Landings on drifting sea ice to conduct pioneering efforts to select a suitable location to build an ice camp. It is expected that the aircraft will remain on the sea-ice for approximately 1 – 2 hours during Pioneering Flights to conduct ice surveys.
The aircraft shall accommodate at least the pilot and four passengers during Pioneering Landing flights, although the capability to accommodate five or more passengers is preferred. The experienced pilot will select a suitable landing site on the ice floe with guidance and concurrence from Operation Ice Camp personnel. The aircraft must also provide capacity for 250 lbs. of ice auger equipment and emergency survival gear; capacity to support higher payload is preferred. Ability to take extra fuel and refuel on the drifting sea ice is preferred.
After the pioneering stage, the ice runway will be built, and aircraft will continue to support the ice camp by utilizing the ice runway. The aircraft may switch (highly preferred) to a wheel configuration (i.e., remove skis) after the ice runway is built and keep the skis in the Operation Ice Camp hangar in Deadhorse, AK to allow for higher payload capacity. When operating from a runway, the aircraft must be able to operate from a 1500 ft. compacted snow or ice runway for both takeoff and landings with a payload of at least 2000 lbs. and seating capability for at least nine passengers. Aircraft must be able to support at least two round trips to the ice camp each day; three round trips per day capability is preferred assuming the ice camp is 225 nautical miles from Deadhorse Airport.
Total Projected Service Period: 22 February – 25 March 2024
Projected Flight Hours: 167 total flight hours
Minimum Flight Hours: 125 total flight hours
CLIN 0003 Rear Loading Aircraft (Personnel and Cargo)
Contractor shall conduct charter aircraft service for a Rear Loading Aircraft to transport cargo and personnel. This aircraft will be required to support the ice camp to include the ice camp deployment, heavy load operations, and the ice camp demobilization. The aircraft must be able to operate from a 2500 feet compacted snow or ice runway for both takeoff and landings with a payload capacity of at least 4000 lbs.; 5000 lbs. payload capacity is preferred. Rear loading ramp and rollers (internal and rear ramp) are preferred. Aircraft must be able to transport objects with lengths up to 19 feet.
Aircraft will be used primarily for cargo and secondarily for personnel transport. Removable aircraft seating required for at least 16 passengers for occasional personnel transport. Ability to support aerial delivery operations is preferred (e.g., dropping small Ice Tracker buoys from the aircraft or parachute rigged pallets/equipment). Aircraft must be able to support at least two round trips to the ice camp each day; three round trips per day capability is preferred assuming the ice camp is 225 nautical miles from Deadhorse Airport.
Projected Service Periods: 27 February – 25 March 2024
Projected Flight Hours: 180 total flight hours*
Minimum Flight Hours: 135 total flight hours
*Project Flight Hours for Cargo Aircraft based on capability of a Casa 212 aircraft. Other aircraft may provide different cargo transport capability (higher or lower), which accounts for the spread between minimum and projected flight hours for this requirement.
CLIN 0004 Rotary Wing Aircraft (Personnel and Cargo)
Contractor shall conduct charter aircraft service for helicopter services at the ice camp. This shall include helicopter transport of personnel and equipment between the ice camp and remote ice locations (e.g., several miles from the ice camp), emergency medical evacuations (from ice camp back to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, or Utqiagvik, Alaska, depending upon location of the ice camp), and recovery of exercise equipment. Helicopter must be able to conduct sling load with at least 2000 lbs. Helicopters must have passenger capacity of at least seven passengers comfortably with passengers wearing Arctic grade clothing, although eight-passenger capacity is highly preferred. For reference, a Bell 212 and Bell 412 helicopter have provided adequate support for these requirements in the past. Rotary aircraft must be able to fly to the ice camp without refueling enroute, assuming the ice camp is 225 nautical miles from Deadhorse Airport. Rotary aircraft will be able to refuel at the ice camp.
The ice camp can provide fuel containment for the helicopter fuel at the ice camp along with other aircraft support equipment (e.g., berms, generator, aircraft heater). The air operator is required to procure the helicopter fuel; the Navy can transport the fuel to the ice camp (see PWS 4.1.a). Recommend air operator provide their own aviation-grade fuel transfer pump at the ice camp. The ice camp will provide lodging and food on the ice for the helicopter crews, at no cost.
Projected Service Periods: 1 March – 22 March 2024
Projected Flight Hours: 52 total flight hours
Minimum Flight Hours: 39 total flight hours
