Smokejumper DC-7 Main Canopies, MT1S Reserve Canopies with Deployment Systems

Forest Service intends to award a sole source firm-fixed price purchase order to Airborne Systems North America of NJ Inc. (UEI: WEYALM4WUT46) for the specialized parachutes as listed in Table 1 below. This action is being conducted on behalf of the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) and the National Technology & Development Program (NTDP).
This action falls under the Authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12 - Commercial Items, conducted in conjunction with FAR Part 13.106-1(b)(1), “soliciting from a single source for purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold”.
The Government requires proprietary parachute components to maintain mission-critical inventory for the National Smokejumper Program. These items must be compatible with existing FS-approved deployment systems (MTDC-1126, 1127, and 1129). Airborne Systems is the sole manufacturer of these specialized life-safety components.

Product Description
DC-7 Main Canopy (P/N 811406-0) (30 units)
MT1S Main Canopy (with top skin drogue ring) (14 units)
MT1S Reserve Canopy (P/N 811306-0) (7units)
MT1S Deployment System (P/N886452-0) (7 units)

Required Delivery: Quarter 2 of Fiscal Year 2027 (Q2 FY27)
The applicable NAICS Code is 314999 (All Other Miscellaneous Textile Product Mills) with a size standard of 500 employees.

This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposals; however, any party believing they can meet the specific technical and safety requirements (compatibility with USFS hardware and inclusion on the Forest Service Approved Equipment List) may submit a capability statement.

Responses must be submitted to the Contracting Officer, Amelia Velasco, at amelia.velasco@usda.gov no later than 15 days after the date of this announcement. T