Sierra Nevada Corp. said on Tuesday it submitted the final component of its response to the Air Force’s Request For Proposals (RFP) for its Light Air Support (LAS) for Afghanistan program.
Sierra Nevada is participating in the new LAS source selection process while it also pursues court action to reinstate the $355 million contract it was awarded by the Air Force in December. The company sued the service June 12, claiming it has not received “adequate explanation” as to why the original contract was terminated. Sierra Nevada also seeks access to the Commander Directed Investigation, which the Air Force has refused to provide (Defense Daily, June 15).
Sierra Nevada Vice President of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Business Development Taco Gilbert told Defense Daily Tuesday in a phone interview that there were two submissions required for the RFP: The past performance portion, which was due June 4, and the cost and technical volume, which was due Monday.
Gilbert said the company re-stated its position in its final response to the RFP.
“We restated the facts,” Gilbert said. “We are a technologically-superior and combat proven system. We are not a prototype. We have a well-established record based on over 147,000 operational hours and 23,000 combat hours, operating in exactly the kind of environments with partner nations that are envisioned for the Light Air Support program. We execute this mission every single day.”
Sierra Nevada had teamed with Brazilian manufacturer Embraer to provide 20 of its A-29 Super Tucano turboprop aircraft to Afghanistan, but the Air Force canceled that contract in February, citing documentation issues, and reopened the bidding to original bidder Hawker Beechcraft Defense Company and its AT-6.