Brian Bradley
NS&D Monitor
3/13/2015
The Air Force plans to award multiple contracts for the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent’s (GBSD’s) Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) phase, and will down-select for the Engineering & Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, according to industry Q&As released March 9. The Air Force has not decided whether it will award the flight, infrastructure and command and control contracts as an option to the existing TMRR weapon system or as new contracts. The service is considering all contract types for the GBSD, and will contemplate industry feedback in its decision, according to the document. The government also stated that it had not determined the goals and would not provide them as part of the RFI, which was released Jan. 23. The Q&As were released this week, but encompassed questions asked before the RFI was published.
The Q & As stated the Air Force would discourage exclusive teaming agreements between TMRR offerors and critical technology vendors wherever possible, to maximize competition. The document also states that the Air Force has not finalized a plan for EMD contracts and a number of options are being considered.
The GBSD is estimated to cost about $945 million over the five-year Future Years’ Defense Program. The Air Force has not yet released an official cost estimate for the program, but last week an industry official told NS&D Monitor that the program was estimated to cost between $40 and $60 billion. A RAND study published in February 2014 estimated the program’s most affordable option, consisting of incremental modernization and sustainment of the Minuteman 3 (MM3), would cost $60 to $90 billion, NS&D Monitor previously reported. A completely new intercontinental ballistic missile would cost $84 to $125 billion, according to the study.
NC3 Concerns
The Air Force has announced intentions to overhaul aging launch control centers, launch facilities and command, control and communications infrastructures based at Malmstrom, Minot and F.E. Warren AFBs. The Q&A sheet states the service is specifically updating its Airborne Launch Control System and the Strategic Automated Command and Control System (SACCS), which plugs in to all three legs of the nuclear triad.
Almost 40 Companies Attend Industry Day
Another document released March 9 listing attendees of the GBSD Industry Day Feb. 18-20 at Hill AFB shows that 38 companies attended the meeting, including current MM3 Integration Support Contractor BAE Systems, current MM3 Guidance Subsystem contractor Boeing, MM3 Ground Subsystem contractor Northrop Grumman and MM3 Reentry Subsystem contractor Lockheed Martin. Other companies in attendance included Aerojet Rocketdyne, Orbital ATK, Rockwell Collins, and General Dynamics.
