Solo bidder wins $500M anti-drone contract

Building technologies and systems to counter the prevalence of drones that threaten troops on the battlefield or just fly into areas were they aren’t wanted is a growing business opportunity for many companies.

That’s why it surprised me that only one company bid on a nearly $500 million contract to research and prototype systems to counter small unmanned aircraft.

PAR Government System Corp. of Rome, New York, was the sole bidder and winner of a $490.4 million Air Force contract. The company will conduct research, design and prototype a system. The contract also will cover operational evaluation, integration, transition and support.

While PAR was the only bidder, an Air Force industry day for the project drew attendees from multiple large business including BAE Systems, CACI International, Dynetics, KBRwyle, Leidos and Northrop Grumman, according to solicitation documents posted by Deltek.

The contract was let by the Air Force Research Lab.

In reviewing the solicitation, the Air Force made it clear that it was looking for a single prime to award the contract to. And there doesn’t appear to be anything in the solicitation that seems designed to scare off other bidders.

There could be a 100 reasons not to bid for the companies that stayed on the sideline. But either way, it’s a great win for PAR.

Posted by Nick Wakeman on Sep 27, 2021 at 11:15 AM