[26] In this regard, however, the J&A did not address the fact that both 10Tanker and Coulson had previously approached the Forest Service about adding additional airtankers to their NextGen contracts (two additional airtankers in the case of Coulson), and that 10Tanker had delivered a second certified airtanker to the Forest Service for the 2013 fire season. This time the air tanker descended two times over the fire zone, crashing at 4:14 pm, while executing the second descent in the Fitzgerald River National Park. The Forest Service also made a Legacy contract award to Minden for one P2V aircraft. As the President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director of OTC Markets, the total compensation of R Coulson at OTC Markets is $924,940. [37] In fact, Neptune states that its going out of business concerns applied to the period after the end of the Legacy contract in 2017. . AR, Tab 57, Neptune Letter to Contracting Officer, Apr. . Coulson Protest, Dec. 20, 2013, at 7-8; Coulson Protest, Feb. 10, 2014, at 4. 29 Sep 1995. 18, 2014, at7. For the next three months the Forest Service tried to reach an alternative settlement agreement with Neptune. The protesters generally do not dispute that the Forest Service requires additional large airtankers to perform its firefighting mission. 4890 Cherry Creek Road Port Alberni, B.C. They do not include all outstanding orders as reported by aircraft manufacturers. The TEB also provided award recommendations that were reviewed and accepted by the agencys source selection authority. See AR, Tab49, Neptune J&A, Dec. 9, 2013, attach. In this case, we have a competitive field and recently awarded multiple contracts on a competitive basis to five firms from a pool of eight firms that submitted proposals on the solicitation. DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE Although the J&A documents the agencys belief that Neptune is, presently, a vital supplier of large airtanker services under Neptunes Legacy contract,[35] the J&A is devoid of evidence or analysis supporting the need to provide Neptune with a sole-source award for the firm to remain a viable source of supply. As detailed below, the record indicates that the verbal representations of Neptunes CEO concerning the firms financial viability were relied upon by the Forest Service when determining the agencys actions. Read More. 7. [A]n independent financial review revealed that Neptune has the financial capacity to operate and continue to supply planes under the current contract with no further contract awards. [20] Id. . Likewise, Minden states that it owns a second aircraft (BAe-146) that it is converting into an airtanker, and would be able to submit a proposal should the Forest Service conduct another competitive procurement. [2][6], The aircraft involved in the crash was a 27-year-old Boeing 737-300, with serial number 28035 and registered as N619SW. On 6 February 2023, a Boeing 737-300 owned by Coulson Aviation and used as an air tanker crashed in the Fitzgerald River National Park in the Great Southern Region of Western Australia while fighting multiple fires. Accordingly, on June 21 the Forest Service informed the SPE of the settlement agreement that the agency had entered with Neptune, and requested that she execute a justification and approval (J&A) for the sole-source award. [15] The Forest Service had USDAs Rural Utilities Service (RUS) analyze Neptunes continued financial viability based on the information provided by Neptune.[16]. Shortly thereafter the Forest Service modified Neptunes Legacy contract and added an additional BAe-146 aircraft for the 2013 fire season at a total estimated price of $4,960,200. Within Tanzania he has a comprehensive corporate/commercial practice covering all aspects of non-contentious transactional . The Forest Service contends that this immediate need for additional NextGen airtankers provided it with an industrial mobilization need in December 2013 when it decided to award Neptune a solesource, 9-year contract for NextGen airtanker services. AR, Jan. 31, 2014, at 32. [31] The USDA contends, citing to our decision in Merlin Intl, Inc., B-310611, Jan. 2, 2008, 2008 CPD 66, that a protester is not an interested party to challenge a sole-source award unless it can meet all of the agencys requirements at the time of the sole-source determination. Quite simply, the existence of a settlement agreement does not permit a contracting agency to act in ways not otherwise permitted by applicable statutes and regulations. 001, May 15, 2013, at B-21. Our highly experienced team of aerial firefighters are an invaluable firefighting asset for Australian emergency services authorities as they fight to protect human lives, infrastructure, wildlife and vegetation. at 32. Jonathan D. Shaffer, Esq., John S. Pachter Esq., Mary Pat Buckenmeyer, Esq., and Rhina M. Cardenal, Esq., Smith Pachter McWhorter PLC, for Coulson Aviation (USA) Inc.; Thomas P. Humphrey, Esq., James G. Peyster, Esq., Olivia L. Lynch, Esq., Derek R. Mullins, Esq., and Robert J. Sneckenberg, Esq., Crowell & Moring LLP, for 10 Tanker Air Carrier, LLC; and Peter B. Hutt II, Esq., and Joseph W. Whitehead, Esq., Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, for Minden Air Corp., the protesters. Coulson Aviation is the first company in the world to convert Boeing's 737 commercial airliners into FireLiner tankers. Coulson Aviation (USA) Inc.; 10Tanker Air Carrier, LLC., B-406920 et al., Sept. 7, 2012. Id. The Forest Service will oppose any . The ASA also stated (repeatedly) that his rationale for the sole-source award to Neptune concerned the Forest Services ability to have enough large airtankers available for the 2014 fire season--not the viability of Neptune as a source of supply. En route to the fires, the aircraft climbed to 29,000 feet (8,800m), before descending to around 700 feet (210m) over the fire zone once. This will be the third converted 737 for Coulson; the first two are identified as T-137 and T-138. 4 C.F.R. . The RUS noted that the information provided by Neptune did not include detailed expense projections or a balance sheet and cash flow projections for the next 5-year period. The SPE then asked FI to perform a comparison of its conclusions with those of RUS. AR, Tab 69, TEB Report, Apr. Only two of the five NextGen contractors are now in compliance with the contract and providing operational airtankers. Further, it offers software, and risk and performance analytics tools for the banking and finance industry; news, compliance, and communications solutions; online capital raising solutions; and OTCIQ, a market intelligence and investor relations portal. Decisions as to which suppliers should be included in a mobilization base, and which restrictions are required to meet the needs of industrial mobilization, involve complex judgments that are generally left to the discretion of the federal agencies. AR, Jan. 31, 2014, at 16 n.14. Its also the only large airtanker capable of carrying 63 firefighters to a fire without the need to reconfigure the cabin providing support, speed and flexibility to fires. Please refer to the current fleet list to see each aircraft's individual age. AR, Tab 67, NextGen RFP, at B-1. Planespotters.net 2023. The agency admits, however, that ultimately it concluded there was no concern with Neptunes present viability, but only with its viability after 2017. In order for a protest to be considered by our Office, a protester must be an interested party, that is, an actual or prospective offeror whose direct economic interest would be affected by the award or failure to award a contract. Although the aircrafts days as an operational water bomber have passed, Coulsons Hawaii Mars aircraft might take to the air again to provide aerial sightseeing tours and could also hit the airshow circuit one day in the future. Foster Coulson of Coulson Aviation said, A brand new technology package will be installed before [the aircraft] go to work. The aircraft will receive upgrades to their cameras and mission systems, as well as new liveries. [25] The ASA did not find anything wrong with the SPEs rationale, and acknowledged her procurement expertise. With our fleet of Boeing 737 FIRELINERS, C-130 Hercules fire bombers, CH47D Chinooks, UH60 Blackhawks and Sikorsky helicopters we have the ability to run rapid air attack aerial fire suppression, including initial attack and extended attack protocols. The SPE also engaged FI Consulting, an external auditing firm, to perform an independent financial viability analysis of Neptune. Neptunes CEO was quite familiar with the FAM Director and other agency officials, as the CEO had been the Forest Services AQM Director until his retirement in December 2010. [a] description of the supplies or services required to meet the agencys needs (including the estimated value), [a] demonstration that the . Our review of an agencys decision to conduct a noncompetitive procurement focuses on the adequacy of the rationale and conclusions set forth in the J&A. T-137 was purchased in May 2019 by the NSW Rural Fire Service along with the two Coulson Citation II C550 support jets. 2 Future records only include new-built aircraft close to delivery and expected second-hand deliveries. First, the SPE and her staff familiarized themselves with the NextGen procurement and the Forest Services requirements for large airtankers generally. Click on the button below to send an email to our team and we will get to it as soon as possible. Based on her review of all information, including the FI financial analysis, the SPE concluded that the planned sole-source contract award to Neptune for industrial mobilization reasons was not presently justified (Neptune didnt need a contract). Wildland Fire Management: Improvements Needed in Information, Collaboration, and Planning to Enhance Federal Fire Aviation Program Success, GAO-13-684, Aug. 20, 2013, at 6. Id. . R. Cromwell Coulson serves as President, Chief Executive Officer, Director of the Company. at 477-78; AR, Tab 36, AQM Director Email, Oct. 30, 2013. Here, the Forest Services description in its J&A of its noncompetitive requirements, as well as its consideration of alternative sources of supply, is inaccurate. Tr. Tr. After a period of storage and conversion, it began operating as an air tanker in July 2022.[7][8]. OTC Markets Group Inc. engages in the financial market business in the United States and internationally. Download VCard. | Overview Coulson . Id. Coulson Aviation (USA) Inc., of Port Alberni, British Columbia, Canada, 10 Tanker Air Carrier, LLC, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Minden Air Corp., of Minden, Nevada, protest the noncompetitive award of contract No. As detailed above, the agency had two financial analyses of Neptune conducted after the company alleged it would go out of business without a NextGen contract award. at 700. at127-29, the agency decided not to override the stay. at658), the agency acknowledges that the 9-year, sole-source contract awarded to Neptune was based on the industrial mobilization exception to CICA. In fact, the ASA testified that the agency plans to conduct additional competitions in the coming years under which Neptune is eligible to compete and could receive awards. Coulson Aviation (USA) Inc.; 10 Tanker Air Carrier, LLC--Costs, supra, at 2. Although the Forest Services long term modernization strategy calls for 18-28 modern large airtankers, the Forest Service is currently dependent upon Legacy large airtankers to meet its needs. [Forest Service] also has two firms on the legacy contract that can supply planes. [12] We dismissed Neptunes challenge to the awards related to CLINs 1-3 because Neptune was not an interested party to challenge awards under line items for which it had not submitted a proposal. The record shows, however, that the contract subsequently awarded to Neptune included the option of five additional large airtankers, for up to 9 years each, at a total estimated value of approximately $496 million--more than three times greater than what was approved. In my time with Coulson I haven't seen them skimp or cut corners anywhere. Specifically, the record contains many letters and emails between Neptune and the Forest Service during this period, and reflects a number of conversations between Neptunes Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Forest Services Director of Fire and Aviation Management (FAM)[13] and Director of Acquisition Management (AQM). . at5556. at 451-52. The company will do the same . In responding to the protests, the agency has acknowledged that it was initially concerned that Neptune would immediately go out of business in during [sic] the 2013 fire season, leaving the Forest Service without any of the Legacy air tankers Neptune supplied under the contract awarded March 27, 2013. Agency Post- Hearing Comments, Mar.

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