Sources Sought
Request for Information (RFI) KC-46 Software Integration Laboratory Operations and Sustainment (O&S)
Department of Defense · Department of the Air Force
AI summaryThe Air Force KC-46A Program Office is asking which firms could operate and sustain its Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL), a high-fidelity test center for the aircraft's software, avionics and hardware. The work would be done inside a government facility at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma. This is a request for information (RFI) for market research only, not a request for proposals, and the response due date is December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern. 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-46A Program Office is asking which firms could operate and sustain its Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL), a high-fidelity test center for the aircraft's software, avionics and hardware. The work would be done inside a government facility at Tinker AFB, Oklahoma. This is a request for information (RFI) for market research only, not a request for proposals, and the response due date is December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern.
Things to watch
From the version posted Oct 19, 2026.
- Worth checking: Specialized avionics software and certification experience. The work calls for avionics bus integration and software testing to FAA and military standards, which a general IT or lab firm may not have.
- Minor: Work inside a government facility. Staff would work at Tinker AFB, which usually means base access and badging steps; the notice does not describe them.
- Minor: Information request only. No contract will be awarded from this RFI, and it is not a request for proposals.
Read from the notice text only.
Full summary
What they want
- System integration for software maintenance, patching, integration and lifecycle support
- Operation and sustainment of complex Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) lab setups, where real hardware is wired into simulated environments, and simulation environments
- Management of federated multi-bus avionics integration (ARINC, MIL-STD-1553B), software partitioning (ARINC 653) and cybersecurity configurations
- Software verification and validation under FAA (DO-178B/C, DO-254) and military certification standards
- Collaboration with government personnel in a Public-Private Partnership (P3) environment
- Place of performance
- Tinker AFB, OK, USA (inside a government facility)
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- Offers due
- December 11, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern
Not in the notice text
- How to send a response and what it must contain are not stated in the text.
- Contract type, length and value are not stated.
- Whether a security clearance or base access is needed is not stated.
- Any set-aside plans are not stated beyond SAM.gov's 'No Set aside used'.
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
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