Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      An MQ-9 Reaper sits on the flight line as the sun sets at Creech Air Force Base, Nev., Nov. 20, 2019. The Reaper provides dominant, persistent attack and reconnaissance 24/7/365. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class William Rio Rosado)An MQ-9 Reaper sits on the flightline as the sun sets at Creech Air Force Base, Nev., Nov. 20, 2019. The Reaper provides dominant, persistent attack and reconnaissance 24/7/365. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class William Rio Rosado)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Program Office awards $7.4 billion ceiling MQ-9 Reaper contractPublished Sept. 17, 2020
                    
                    By Brian Brackens
                    
                    
                    Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Public Affairs
            **WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) --**In an effort to fieldMQ-9 Reapers faster and meet an increasing operational demand for the aircraft, the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s MQ-9 Program Office awarded a $7.4 billion ceiling Agile Reaper Enterprise Solution (ARES) contract to General Atomics Sept. 17.The MQ-9 is an unmanned aircraft with intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and strike capabilities, and is one of the most in demand weapons systems in the U.S. Air Force.
ARES, a five year fixed indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract, developed by the MQ-9 Program Office, will stabilize costs, allow for the procurement of up to 36 aircraft per year in the same appropriation year, and reduce the time it takes to deliver the aircraft to operational units by approximately 35%.
ARES is flexible and it has streamlined the traditional contract award process.
ARES has a pre-negotiated $3.3 billion price-quantity-curve. This curve allows the Air Force and foreign military sales partners to unilaterally order between 4-36 aircraft in a single year.
Foreign Military Sales partners will be allowed to procure the Dash 21 variant, which is the NATO exportable version of the MQ-9A.
The contract contains pre-priced Mobile Ground Control Stations, Ground Data Terminal, spares, and support equipment. This pre-priced contract allows the MQ-9 Program Office to go through the complete contract clearance process only once.
“Prior to ARES, the standard contract award timeline was roughly 380 days,” said Alicia Morales, aircraft production manager with the Medium Altitude Unmanned Aerial System (MAUAS) Program Office, who was instrumental in developing ARES. “Now, once we have a budget, and it’s in our account, we can award in just a couple of days and field the aircraft in 26 months.”
In addition to fielding MQ-9’s faster, ARES brings a level of certainty to the MQ-9 Program.
“ARES is a big deal because it answers the ‘mail’ as far as how do we deal with hard-to-predict demand signals from our international partners and enable increased responsiveness to U.S. Budget dynamics,” Morales said. “So, the team came together and figured out the best and most innovative approach to deal with unplanned requirements, so no matter what comes, we are prepared and able to handle it.”
The MQ-9 Program Office is capitalizing on this innovative contracting approach as they intend to award similar contracts for other enterprise-wide requirements.  
“This serves as a great lesson on how you can empower your workforce to deliver strategic wins for the program,” said Lt. Col. Nick Jordan, materiel leader for MQ-9 Production and Retrofit. “Because of the hard work from the ARES team, we are postured to rapidly respond to changing production requirements, as we continue to exploit every seam to accelerate the fielding of proven combat solutions to the warfighter.”USAF 



AF 



Air Force 



Wright-Patterson AFB 



MQ-9 



Reaper 



AFLCMC 



Air Force Life Cycle Management Center 



ARES 



Agile Reaper Enterprise Solution 



General Atomics 



contract 



innovation 



L/R Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fight
                    
                    SecAF Kendall AFA Warfare Symposium Q&A: Reoptimizing for Great Power CompetitionInnovation
                AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalists
                    
                    Chief Digital, Artificial Intelligence Office to host hackathon in HawaiiMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil