Posted on 01/23/2025 3:21:50 AM PST by Fish Speaker
WASHINGTON — While the Department of the Air Force has not revealed the impetus behind its unusual Jan. 16 announcement that Space Development Agency chief Derek Tournear has been placed on administrative leave, Breaking Defense has learned that the move is related to an ongoing bid protest by Viasat over an recent SDA contract award.
According to several sources involved, Tournear allegedly stepped afoul of DoD contracting procedures in the runup to SDA’s Aug. 16 award of two prototype agreements worth approximately $424 million in total to York Space Systems and Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, a subsidiary of Terran Orbital, out of a field of eight competitors. For the award, each contractor was tasked with building 10 Tranche 2 Transport Layer (T2TL) – Gamma variant prototype space vehicles. (Terran Orbital was bought by Lockheed Martin in October.)
SDA has explained that the Gamma satellites will not be part of the operational Transport Layer of data relay satellites, but instead are related to the agency’s efforts to develop fire control capabilities for missile defense and the experimental FOO Fighter program.
Viasat protested the award in September in the US Court of Federal Claims, alleging its offering was unfairly weighted and that its competitors were improperly given a helping hand in the bid process. The protest has resulted in a re-evaluation of the awards by the Department of the Air Force and SDA.
(Excerpt) Read more at breakingdefense.com ...
FOO fighter?
Yeah, what?
What did this clown just reveal?
I had viasat internet...
They suck canal water..
Service was spotty at best..
I hope they lose whatever they are fighting for
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