Sources Sought
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) KC-46 SW Integration Sustainment & Support (K-SWISS)
Department of Defense · Department of the Air Force
AI summaryThe Air Force KC-46 Program Office (AFLCMC, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH) is asking for information from firms that could act as lead software system integrator for the KC-46A tanker. It is market research only, not a request for proposals or quotes. Responses are due by the response due date, December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern, by email. More in the summary
Market research, not a bid. Replying is free and tells Department of the Air Force who could do this work. Send a short reply to the contracting contact; no price is needed. See the contact
AI summary Beta
The Air Force KC-46 Program Office (AFLCMC, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH) is asking for information from firms that could act as lead software system integrator for the KC-46A tanker. It is market research only, not a request for proposals or quotes. Responses are due by the response due date, December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern, by email.
How to submit: Email to Mr. Michael Crane at michael.crane.11@us.af.mil. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (6)
From the version posted Oct 19, 2026.
- Serious: Very large scope for a lead integrator. The Air Force wants one company to manage software from many aircraft makers, so a small business would likely need a team and prior avionics software integration experience.
- Worth checking: Information request only, no contract offered. This is market research. The Air Force will not fund responses, is not seeking quotes and will not accept unsolicited quotes, and it may never issue a solicitation.
- Worth checking: Flight software certification experience asked for. The RFI asks for work under RTCA DO-178B/C, DO-254, and FAA certificate compliance aligned with military certification, which few small firms have.
Show all 6Show fewer
- Worth checking: Ties to named aircraft makers requested. The integrator must set up agreements with suppliers including Boeing, Collins, GE, Eaton, Woodward and Raytheon, and the RFI asks about your business relations with them.
- Minor: Security clearance information requested. The RFI asks for the highest clearance your company holds, and the work involves classified mission networks, so a facility clearance may matter in a later solicitation.
- Minor: Response page limit. The capability package is capped at 10 pages, not counting the cover page, so the response must be tight.
Read from the notice and 1 attachment. Show which files.
- RFI for K-SWISS Software integration.pdf (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Show you can be the lead system integrator for KC-46 software: sign agreements with suppliers and manage maintenance, patching, integration and lifecycle support
- Describe your agile software process and how it fits DoD 5000.87, plus your agile and DevSecOps (development, security and operations) continuous integration and delivery plan
- Show experience with the listed KC-46 refueling and avionics systems and any business ties to the OEMs (original equipment makers) that build them
- Show experience with flight software certification (RTCA DO-178B/C, FAA Amended and Supplemental Type Certificates) and merging code branches into one certified release
- Show cybersecurity experience: Risk Management Framework (RMF) and the 10 Cyber Survivability Attributes at the software and firmware level
- Describe software configuration and database management, deficiency report resolution, and a data rights strategy for the Air Force
- Describe your ability to design and run Type-1 technical training so Air Force staff can run the software labs themselves
- Say whether K-SWISS should be combined with the separate KC-46 Systems Integration Lab operations and sustainment effort, and why
- Place of performance
- Wright Patterson AFB, OH, USA
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- Offers due
- December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern (the RFI says 5pm EST)
- How to submit
- Email to Mr. Michael Crane at michael.crane.11@us.af.mil
- Page limits
- Capability package: 10 pages maximum, not including the cover page. Single-spaced, Arial 10-12 point, 8.5 x 11 inch pages, 1-inch top and bottom margins, 3/4 inch side margins; foldouts count in the page total.
What to include when you submit
- Send a capability package with a cover letter showing you can meet the stated requirements with qualified personnel
- Cover the qualification (type and length of employee experience), your level of involvement (prime or subcontractor), years providing similar support and oversight, and other relevant details
- State your level of interest in bidding as a prime contractor: not likely, somewhat not likely, likely, somewhat likely or highly likely
- If likely to bid, describe potential teaming arrangements and which tasks the prime would do versus the subcontractor
- Include company name, address, phone, email, point of contact and website
- Include the highest security clearance your company holds
- Include your business status (small, small disadvantaged, woman-owned, 8(a), service-disabled veteran-owned and so on)
- List previous contract numbers with descriptions of services, and Contracting Officer and Program Manager contact information
- Include your CAGE code, Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and size or socio-economic status for NAICS 336413
- Say whether the K-SWISS work should be combined with the KC-46 Systems Integration Lab operations and sustainment contract, with your rationale
Current contractor
No incumbent is named for K-SWISS. The RFI says the earlier Interim Contracted Support contract (FA8625-11-C-6600) ended in June 2022 with no stand-alone software maintenance coverage, and the software work shifted to the existing KOSS contract. The RFI notes the KOSS software service contract relies on continued OEM support.
Not in the notice text
- Contract type, period of performance and estimated value are not given
- Whether a solicitation will follow, and whether it would be set aside for small businesses; the SAM.gov set-aside is none
- How the Air Force will use responses to choose a source
- The companion RFI for the KC-46 Systems Integration Lab operations and sustainment is a separate notice; its details were not read
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside. Any business can reply: this is market research, and no bid is being taken yet.
- To respond, send a short reply to the contracting contact near the top of this page. No price is needed.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 19, 2026
- Notice type
- Sources Sought
- Office
- FA8609 AFLCMC WLCK KC46, Wright Patterson AFB, OH
- Business type
- Aircraft, ship & vehicle parts (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 336413)
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
Terms on this notice: Sources sought notice
Full notice text from SAM.gov
The United States Air Force (USAF) KC-46 Program Office is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) to identify sources capable of providing comprehensive software integration, sustainment, and support for the KC-46A Tanker program. The Government is seeking a lead System Integrator to manage the entire KC-46 software enterprise. Key responsibilities will include, but are not limited to: Managing and integrating software modifications from multiple original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and suppliers. Providing total lifecycle software support, including maintenance, patching, and modernization. Overseeing system and software airworthiness and cybersecurity compliance. Coordinating test, certification, and deployment of software releases. This RFI is issued for market research and planning purposes only and does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP). The information gathered will be used to refine the Government's acquisition strategy. Interested parties with experience in large-scale avionics software integration, sustainment, and program management are encouraged to review the full RFI document for detailed requirements and instructions for response.
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