Author Topic: Blue Origin files protest over ‘flawed’ Air Force launch procurement  (Read 595 times)

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Offline Elderberry

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SpaceNews by Sandra Erwin — August 12, 2019

Blue Origin filed a “pre-award” protest with the GAO, arguing that the rules set by the Air Force do not allow for a fair and open competition.

Blue Origin filed a protest with the U.S. Government Accountability Office on Monday challenging the Air Force’s plan to select two providers in the next procurement of launch services under the National Security Space Launch program.

Blue Origin, a rocket manufacturer and suborbital spaceflight company founded by Jeff Bezos, filed what is known as a “pre-award” protest with the GAO, arguing that the rules set by the Air Force do not allow for a fair and open competition.

“The Air Force is pursuing a flawed acquisition strategy for the National Security Space Launch program,” states a Blue Origin fact sheet that outlines the reasons for the protest.

The Air Force intends to select two winners for the National Security Space Launch Phase 2 Launch Service Procurement in 2020 to split 60/40 all national security missions from 2022 to 2026. Four companies — United Launch Alliance, Blue Origin, SpaceX and Northrop Grumman are expected to compete. Proposals were due Aug. 12, the same day Blue Origin filed the protest. According to the fact sheet, the company is pursuing this action to “ensure the terms of the Air Force Phase 2 Launch Service Procurement Request for Proposal clearly promote full and fair competition.”

The RFP the Air Force released May 3 “includes evaluation criteria that are ambiguous and fail to comply with federal procurement statutes and regulations. This subjectivity of the criteria makes it impossible to accurately respond to the RFP,” the fact sheet states.

More: https://spacenews.com/blue-origin-files-protest-over-flawed-air-force-launch-procurement/