GPS Block IIIF, or GPS IIIFollow On, is the second set of GPS III satellites, consisting of 22 space vehicles. The United States Air Force began the GPS Block IIIF acquisition effort in 2016, and awarded a 7.2 billion US dollar manufacturing contract for all 22 space vehicles to Lockheed Martin on September 14, 2018. The 22 satellites in Block IIIF are projected to be delivered starting in 2026, with launches estimated to last through at least 2034.
Development
The U.S. Air Force employed a two-phase competitive bid acquisition process for the GPS Block IIIF satellites.
Phase One: Production Feasibility Assessment
On May 5, 2016, the U.S. Air Force awarded three Phase One Production Readiness Feasibility Assessment contracts for GPS III Space Vehicles 11+, one each to Boeing Network and Space Systems, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, and Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems. The phase one contracts were worth up to six million dollars each. During the phase one effort, both Boeing and Northrop Grumman successfully demonstrated working navigation payloads.
Phase Two: Satellite Manufacturing
On April 19, 2017, the US Air Force Space Command announced the start of the second phase of its acquisition strategy with the publication of a special notice for an "Industry Day" for companies planning on bidding for the contract to manufacture GPS III vehicles 11+. During the Industry Day event, the Air Force shared the tentative acquisition strategy which it will use to evaluate proposals, then solicited feedback from potential bidders. In July 2017, the Deputy Director of the U.S. Air Force GPS Directorate stated the acquisition strategy for GPS Block IIIF would be to award the manufacturing contracts for all 22 Block IIIF satellites to the same contractor. In November 2017, the Deputy Director of the US Air Force's GPS Directorate announced the name of the second tranche of GPS III satellites was "GPS Block IIIF." Also in November 2017, it was announced that development of the fully digital navigation payload for GPS Block IIIF satellites had completed. The Block IIIA program schedule was delayed multiple times due to issues with the navigation payload.
Bidding
While the Air Force originally expected to publish the formal Request For Proposals for GPS Block IIIF production in September 2017, it was not released until February 13, 2018. The RFP was for a firm-fixed price contract for a single company to manufacture all 22 space vehicles. All three participants from phase one were believed to be likely to submit proposals. The government held a pre-proposal conference in El Segundo, CA to be held on March 15, 2018 for potential bidders to ask the Air Force questions about the solicitation. The submission deadline for proposals was 12:00pm Pacific Daylight Time on April 16, 2018. The bid status of companies who participated in phase one, in alphabetical order:
Boeing: declined to submit a proposal
Lockheed Martin: submitted a proposal
Northrop: declined to submit a proposal
Contract Award
On September 14, 2018, the Air Force awarded a $7.2 billion manufacturing contract to Lockheed Martin.
Funding
Procurement funds for GPS Block IIIF satellite manufacturing will be allocated from the federal budget, starting with Fiscal Year 2018.
New characteristics
The Air Force has identified four "technology insertion points" for GPS Block IIIF. These four points are the only four times during the block's lifecycle where new capabilities will be allowed to be introduced to Block IIIF satellites.
