Solicitation
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Research And Commercial Solutions Opening (RCSO) Area Of Interest (AOI) - Complexity Of Systems And Operations
Department of Transportation · Federal Aviation Administration
AI summarySolicitation 693KA8-27-T-00003, Phase I research/solution briefs: due November 2, 2026, 6:00 PM Eastern. Only firms the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) invites after Phase I may give Phase II pitches, and only those invited after that may send Phase III proposals. The FAA wants human factors research on how complex aircraft systems and operations burden pilots and aircraft maintenance staff. Awards would be Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs), special agreements that are not regular federal contracts. More in the summary
AI summary Beta
This summary may miss requirements: 1 of 4 attachments weren't read (Q and A - Final AOI Complexity of Systems and Operations.xlsx). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
Solicitation 693KA8-27-T-00003, Phase I research/solution briefs: due November 2, 2026, 6:00 PM Eastern. Only firms the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) invites after Phase I may give Phase II pitches, and only those invited after that may send Phase III proposals. The FAA wants human factors research on how complex aircraft systems and operations burden pilots and aircraft maintenance staff. Awards would be Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs), special agreements that are not regular federal contracts.
Who can bid
- Brief must meet one of the FAA's OTA qualifiers, such as working with non-traditional government contractors (a company with no FAA contract in the past year; all small businesses count) or leveraging commercial industry investment
- Research must fit human factors and human performance from the viewpoint of pilots and aircraft maintenance personnel
How to submit: Email to the Agreements Officer, Chersharon.Y.King@faa.gov, with the subject line 693KA8-27-T-00003 INNOVATIVE RESEARCH/SOLUTION BRIEF - AVIATION HUMAN FACTORS RESEARCH. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (8)
From the version posted Oct 23, 2026.
- Serious: Phased process: this notice is Phase I only. Phase I briefs are due November 2, 2026; only firms invited by the FAA may give Phase II pitches or send Phase III proposals, and dates for those phases are not given.
- Worth checking: Narrow research scope. Only human factors research from the view of pilots and aircraft maintainers is in scope, so firms without that research background are unlikely to fit.
- Worth checking: No guarantee of an award or any payment. The FAA may not request a proposal or make an award, and does not pay for the cost of preparing a brief.
Show all 8Show fewer
- Worth checking: Few firms invited to pitch. A brief can have merit and still not be invited to pitch, because the FAA can limit the number of firms invited.
- Worth checking: Cost share may be required in Phase III. If it applies to the AOI, the firm must contribute cash or in-kind resources toward the work, which the Government does not reimburse.
- Minor: Pitch needs a price estimate, schedule and data rights position. Firms invited to pitch must give a rough order of magnitude price and notional schedule, and the brief should already name any intellectual property restrictions.
- Minor: Time of day for briefs differs by source. SAM.gov gives 6:00 PM Eastern on November 2, 2026; the AOI document gives only the date.
- Minor: Follow-on work may skip competition. A prototype award can lead to a production award without further competition, which helps the awardee and shuts out others.
Read from the notice and 3 attachments. 1 of 4 not read. Show which files.
- 693KA8-27-T-00003 RCSO AOI - Complexity Of Systems And Operations.pdf (read)
- Federal Aviation Administration Responses To Questions Submitted.pdf (read)
- BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO (Final).pdf (read)
- Q and A - Final AOI Complexity of Systems and Operations.xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
Full summary
What they want
- Human factors research that identifies and measures what makes aircraft systems, automation, software, operations and airspace complex from the pilot's point of view
- Study how combined complexity affects pilot and maintainer performance, and how much complexity is too much
- Topic 1: multiple dimensions of complexity (aircraft, subsystem, task, function, operations, environment)
- Topic 2: how pilot-machine interfaces hide or shift complexity; Topic 3: more automation, explainability and artificial intelligence tools
- Topic 4: managing human error, monitoring and troubleshooting complex systems; Topic 5: airspace, airport and procedure complexity
- Topic 6: complexity where aircraft and air traffic control systems connect, including uneven modernization
- Turn findings into usable data sets, methods, tools, criteria and reports that the FAA and the public can use
- Use empirical studies, modeling and simulation, analytic assessments, and verification and validation
- Contract type
- Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) for research or a prototype project, not a regular federal contract; the FAA is not obligated to make an award
- Period of performance
- Briefs and proposals should generally propose no more than 36 months
- Place of performance
- Washington, DC per SAM.gov; the documents do not give a place of performance
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- Contract vehicle
- FAA Research and Commercial Solutions Opening (RCSO), Broad Agency Announcement BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO, Area of Interest (AOI) Complexity of Systems and Operations
- How they'll choose
- Phased review. Phase I briefs are judged on their own merit against set criteria, not against other briefs. The FAA may invite only a few firms to Phase II pitches.
- Offers due
- November 2, 2026, 6:00 PM Eastern
- How to submit
- Email to the Agreements Officer, Chersharon.Y.King@faa.gov, with the subject line 693KA8-27-T-00003 INNOVATIVE RESEARCH/SOLUTION BRIEF - AVIATION HUMAN FACTORS RESEARCH
- Page limits
- Research/Solution Brief: 5 written pages in 12-point font, or 15 briefing slides; strongly recommended, not required. The title page does not count.
What they'll judge offers on
- Phase I brief: (a) meets one of the FAA's OTA qualifiers, (b) relevance to the AOI, (c) approach or technology is unique, underutilized or innovative for the Government, (d) a compelling solution to the problem statement, (e) technical merit and feasibility
- Phase II pitch (by invitation): relevance, technical merit and feasibility, company viability, unique or innovative approach, rough order of magnitude (ROM) price acceptable, notional schedule acceptable, impact of data rights assertions
- Phase III proposal (by invitation): meets the Technical Direction Document (TDD) requirements, research or technical feasibility, mission effectiveness, reasonable cost within available funds, applicable to an FAA platform, system or component
What to include when you submit
- Title page: company name, title, date, point of contact name, email, phone and address, and the AOI topics the brief covers
- Executive summary of the research or technology (one page)
- Research section: the unique aspects of the work, whether it is a pilot study or new research, a path to advance and validate it, and any proprietary elements
- Technology concept section: whether it demonstrates existing commercial technology or develops new technology, a path to mature it, and any proprietary elements
- Company viability: a company overview, fundraising to date or top-line revenue, and product commercialization and go-to-market strategy
- Say which one of the FAA's OTA qualifiers your brief meets
- Keep the submission unclassified; if it holds restricted data, put the BAA's required restriction sentences on the cover page and mark each restricted sheet
- Send a separate brief for each distinct concept; several briefs for one AOI are allowed
- Include your full legal company name, a brief history, number of employees, and CAGE code or UEI if you have them
After award, you must have
- Registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) is needed to receive an award; the BAA advises starting when an RFP arrives From BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO (Final).pdf:
…register in the System for Award Management (SAM) to receive an award.
- Not suspended or debarred from federal awards and found responsible by the Agreements Officer From BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO (Final).pdf:
The Entity must be determined to be responsible by the AO…
Not in the notice text
- Attached but not read: Q and A - Final AOI Complexity of Systems and Operations.xlsx (questions and FAA answers); the FAA says it will send responses to questions NLT October 23, 2026, 6:00 PM ET
- Dates and times for Phase II pitches and Phase III proposals are not given; they depend on FAA invitations
- The size of the award, funding amount and number of awards are not stated
- Any cost-share amount for this AOI is not stated
- Where the research work would be done is not stated
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside: any business, large or small, can bid unless the notice says otherwise.
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Email to the Agreements Officer, Chersharon.Y.King@faa.gov, with the subject line 693KA8-27-T-00003 INNOVATIVE RESEARCH/SOLUTION BRIEF - AVIATION HUMAN FACTORS RESEARCH. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 23, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- 693KA8 System Operations Contracts, Washington, DC
- Product/service code
- AS25 · Transportation R&D Services; Aerospace Research; Expenses for R&D Facilities and Major Equipment
- Business type
- Engineering, architecture & research (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 541715)
- Versions
3 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 23, 2026 · Amendment 0002 (this version)Due Nov 2, 2026
- Oct 21, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Nov 2, 2026
- Oct 6, 2026 · SolicitationDue Nov 2, 2026
- 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
- How to respond to a solicitation (8 steps)
- How to read a government solicitation
- How to price a government contract
Terms on this notice: Solicitation
Full notice text from SAM.gov
General Information This solicitation is for Area of Interest (AOI) Complexity of Systems and Operations under the Broad Agency Announcement BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO - Research And Commercial Solutions Opening (RCSO). Interested parties should review the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) RCSO special posting BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO on SAM.gov in its entirety to obtain the necessary information on the process and evaluation of the RCSO AOI submission. This RCSO AOI seeks to solicit innovative research/solutions that meet the objectives detailed in Sections 5.1 – 5.6. The term innovative is defined as any technology, process, or method, including research and development that is new as of the date of proposal submission; or any new application of an existing technology, process or method as of the proposal date. The FAA is not obligated to extend a request for proposal or make an award as a result of this RCSO AOI; all awards are subject to the availability of funds and successful negotiations. This RCSO AOI is not an authorization to begin performance, and in no way obligates the Government for any costs incurred by the Offeror associated with developing a response. Prior to commencement of any activities associated with performance under this RCSO AOI, the Government will execute a written Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) award signed by the Agreements Officer (AO) with appropriate consideration established. The FAA reserves the right to modify the requirements of this RCSO AOI. See Attachments for additional information. Interested parties should review the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) RCSO special posting BAA-693KA8-26-RCSO attached and also on SAM.gov in its entirety to obtain the necessary information on the process and evaluation of the RCSO AOI submission.
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