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Contracted Surrogate UAV Services  –  MERX NPP  –  May 2012 Surrogate Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) Services: A Training Aid for CMTC Wainwright — MERX  Notice of  Proposed Procurement The use of surrogate UAVs is nothing new. The Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre at Wainwright uses stand-ins because, for a decade, DND has fumbled plans to buy a 'Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance'  UAV for the Canadian Forces.  In the past, CMTC has employed large CP-140 Aurora patrol aircraft and tiny ScanEagle SUAVs to fill  in for the missing MALE UAVs. CMTC have also used a borrowed IAI Malat Heron, the demonstrator for Project Noctua which led to the lease of operational  CU-170 Herons. All  that was necessary because DND's  'Joint Unmanned Surveillance Target Acquisi- tion System' (JUSTAS) Project has proven incapable of culmination time and again. [1] JUSTAS raises troubling questions about DND procurement. CMTC's ad hoc solution raises questions of its own. Many companies offer contracted surrogate UAV services but our allies have also used Optionally-Piloted Vehicles (OPV) as surrogate UAVs for years. [2]  In light of the endless delays in buying actual  MALE UAVs, perhaps DND should examine the advantages of a permanent place for surrogate UAVs in Exercises. DND would have to first define 'Surrogate UAV'. [3] A surrogate UAV can be as simple as a light aircraft with a temporary sensor- kit installed. That would suit CMTC Exercises where the point is for troops to practice receiving and processing surveillance and targeting data from a MALE UAV.  In other words, sensors and data stream are key (ie: the point is not  to train UAV operators). What the kitted-up light plane has as an advantage over an actual UAV is not having to tangle with Transport Canada over regulations restricting unmanned aircraft flying in Canadian airspace. Indeed, similar FAA restrictions  in the US  were what prompted the development of  OPVs by the US Navy some 15 years ago.  So, DND's question is: if owned  MALE UAVs have been elusive for a decade,  why has the UAV Directorate not been circumvented  through 'interim' procurement of any manned equivalents ? [4] One of  the more popular surrogate UAV airframes right now has a  Canadian connection. The Diamond DA-42  light twin has been developed into a 'Multi-Purpose Platform' used  by contractors as well as the UK MoD and Swiss military. In an ironic twist, the DA-42 has also recently been in the news. A UAV derivative, the Israeli Dominator XP  (rebranded as the Miskam) is being flown around Quebec by CAE challenging Transport Canada's UAV restrictions. Worthy work but need the CF also fight that battle? Or do OPVs as surrogate MALE UAVs for training exercises give the same data flow with a reduced technological risk? The text of  this NPP has been edited for terseness (by removing excessive acronyms). [1]  JUSTAS sprang out of CF UAV trials in 2003.  Initially, MALE UAVs were seen as cheap alternatives to CP-140s on Northern Patrols. The Manley Report of 2008 shifted emphasis to battlefield surveillance, splitting  JUSTAS in two. This spawned the Joint Airborne ISR Capability later derailed by DND's ill-considered single-sourcing attempt. [2] The US Naval Postgraduate School's  Center for  Interdisciplinary Remotely-Piloted Aircraft Studies developed a Cessna 337-based Pelican OPV as a surrogate UAV back in 1996-1998. Alongside Pelicans, CIRPAS also use the Twin Otter as surrogate UAV. [3] The fact that this NPP alone uses both "Unmanned Air Vehicle" and "Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle" is not encouraging. The CF's only deployed MALE UAV were part of an 'Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Detachment'.  DND must define 'UAV' before 'Surrogate'. [4] That could equally apply to deployed systems. The US is a major UAV user yet it was the US Army that saw the continued value of  recce sensors in manned systems. ________________________________________ SURROGATE  UNMANNED AIR VEHICLE  ( UAV ) SERVICES – MERX Notice of Proposes Procurement ________________________________________ Reference Number                PW-$EDM-607-9432 Solicitation Number              W168A-1201CM/A Organization Name               Public Works and Government Services Canada                                                  Travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada Source ID                               FD.DP.QC.10077.C2 Associated Components     Yes Dates Published     2012-05-28 Revised        — Closing         2012-06-13  02:00 PM  Mountain Daylight Saving Time  MDT Details Category     Aerospace GSINS          N1550: Drones, N1550A: Drones, Unmanned Air Vehicle Manufacturers,                       V204H: Aerial Inspection and Reconnaissance Services, WL1550: Unin-                       habited Air Vehicle (UAV) - Lease Region of Delivery            Alberta, Foreign Region of Opportunity     — Agreement Type                Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) Tender Type                       Notice of Proposed Procurement (NPP) Estimated Value                  — Solicitation Method           — Notice Description SURROGATE UNMANNED AIR VEHICLE (UAV) SERVICES Trade Agreement:  Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) Tendering Procedures:  — Attachment:  None Competitive Procurement Strategy:  Best Overall Proposal Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement:  No Nature of Requirements: 1. TITLE: SURROGATE U[N]MANNED AIR VEHICLE (UAV) SERVICES 2. SECURITY: There is no security requirement associated with the requirement. 3. REQUIREMENT: It is the objective of [DND], Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre (CMTC), through high-readiness training provided at Canadian Forces Base/Area Support Unit Wainwright (CFB/ASU Wrx) Alberta, and other bases in Canada and the United States, to simulate the collection of intelligence by the use of a Surrogate Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance (MALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for training purposes to be applied to real manoeuvres in an active theatre of operations. CMTC requires a contractor to provide Surrogate UAV Services at ASU Wrx and abroad as required. It is the intention of the [DND] CMTC to award a Standing Offer Agreement (SOA) effective for a period of two (2) years with an option to extend for two (2) additional periods of one-year each. Each Exercise will require approximately 5 to 10 days of  imaging time plus: one (1) day to attend operations, orientation, and safety meetings as directed; to demonstrate satisfactory flight, communications, and connectivity performance to CMTC's satisfaction prior to the exercise functions and; one (1) day once the exercise is closed and last deliverable recordings have been handed to the Aviation Plans Officer, to participate in the closing After Action Review as required. The use of contracted Surrogate UAVs would mitigate the operational and administrative burden associated with these assets and ensure the necessary tactical flexibility demanded of UAVs operating in the Contemporary Operating Environment. 4. EVALUATION AND SELECTION: Mandatory and point rated technical evaluation criteria are included in Annex "D" of the solicitation. Contractor selection will be based on the responsive bid with the highest combined rating of technical merit and price. The ratio will be 60% for the technical merit and 40% for the price. 5. PERIOD OF STANDING OFFER:  It is anticipated that any Standing Offer will be effective for a period of two (2) years with an option to extend for two (2) additional periods of one-year each. [...]