1. General: This Request for Information (RFI) is not a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, quotations, or obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services, but for planning purposes only. This RFI is to gain knowledge of potential qualified sources and to explore industry capabilities. Your response to this RFI will be treated as information only. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission to this announcement or the Government use of such information. The information provided may be used by the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) in development of its acquisition strategy, statement of work/statement of objectives, and performance specifications. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marked proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government does not intend to award a contract based on this request for information or to otherwise pay for the information submitted in response to this RFI. 2. Purpose: a. USSOCOM, Special Operations Forces-Acquisition Technology and Logistics (SOF AT&L), Program Executive Office-Tactical Information Systems (PEO-TIS), Program Management Office-Remote Capabilities (PMO-RC), small Uncrewed Multidomain Systems (sUMS) seeks information on specific technology areas to gain knowledge of, explore, and identify potential methodologies and available capabilities in the examination of Medium Range/Medium Endurance (MR/ME) Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) for inclusion in sME 26-6. b. MR/ME UAS Traits: (1) Basic Traits: MR/ME UAS proposed platforms must not exceed 55 pounds in full flight configuration to include airframe, power supply and payload. MR/ME UAS systems shall be designed to operate with a desired range of approximately 20km, with an endurance greater than or equal to two (2) hours. These systems shall be adaptable for stationary or mobile operations, capable of launching, operating, and recovering during day or night in standard or adverse weather conditions, including environmental factors like rain and dust. MR/ME UAS shall operate in atmospheric extremes from -58.1C (-60F) to 54.4C (130F). The system shall operate in sustained winds less than or equal to 39 knots with gusts less than or equal to 47 knots. The system shall operate at greater than or equal to 40 knots indicated air speed (KIAS) cruising speed with a dash of greater than or equal to 60 KIAS. The system shall be capable of operating at altitudes of less than or equal to 18,000’ Mean Sea Level (MSL). The system shall be capable of operating in conditions less than or equal to two inches (2”) of rain per hour. The MR/ME UAS must operate in RF congested and GNSS-contested environments. The MR/ME UAS shall be capable of operating with a payload in excess of 5lbs not including systems required for flight operations. System components shall be replaceable or reconfigurable by trained SOF operators within 30 minutes. The system shall utilize an electric or hybrid-based propulsion system. The system must follow a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) to host government-developed collaborative autonomy plugins to plan and execute missions independently or collaboratively with operators in the loop (OITL) or on the loop (ONTL); this includes sufficient data storage and an accessible Graphics Processing Unit that has 16 gigabytes of memory, a minimum of 1024 cores and 32 tensor cores. All components must comply with the American Security Drone Act of 2023. (2) Desired Traits: The following traits are highly desired and will be viewed favorable: launch and recovery in multiple artificial environments (RF and PNT/GNSS denied environments, various EW scenarios, etc.); airframe shall launch and recover from an are less than or equal to a 15 foot diameter and greater than or equal to 100 foot above ground level (AGL) obstacle; operation in multiple environments to include ground, water/maritime (fresh, salt, and brackish), etc.; airframe should remain afloat until recovery or provide other novel low visibility recovery capability; ability to launch and recover from multiple SOF operational platforms (ground, aircraft, and maritime vessels); novel and unique capabilities that reduce acoustic, visual, infrared, RF, and other signatures; integration into the SOF Tactical Android Kit environment. c. All hardware/equipment submitted for the evaluation shall be production models and capable of performing specific core mission sets conducted by Special Operations Forces (SOF) UAS operators in an operational environment. d. While un-released commercial devices that meet most of the capabilities are allowed, the expectation is that all devices will be final product versions and meet the capabilities detailed in the scenarios that align with approved mission profiles and establish statistical confidence in the results. e. Mission profile evaluation may consist of two independently conducted events, but when performed together are considered an Integrated Operational Test and Evaluation.: (1) Technical Evaluation (TE) to confirm the quality and accuracy of device performance and output; (2) Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E) to evaluate training, determine usability and suitability for SOF operators in a realistic environment. f. Responses to this RFI may be used by USSOCOM, SOF AT&L, PEO-TIS, PM-RC and sUMS and other Department of War entities to identify potential hardware and equipment solutions for participation in the further evaluation of market information and/or ascertain potential market capacity to provide services consistent in scope and scale with those described in this notice. 3. Timeline: The sME 26-6 is scheduled from November 2025 thru October 2026 in the greater Tampa, Florida area. The preliminary schedule of events (subject to change) is as follows: a. NLT 11 December 2025 – RFI Response. Interested Manufacturers/Vendors respond to this RFI. Responses should be submitted directly through the USSOCOM Vulcan platform at: https://vulcan-sof.com/login/ng2/submission?collectionUuid=3da9ece6-a4af-467b-b5af-9d12ef606aca and must include a detailed three (3) to five (5) page UNCLASSIFIED capability paper of the proposed current capabilities as described at Section 2. Title of submission should be sME 26-6_ _ . Additionally, identification of the offeror’s primary point(s) of contact with phone and electronic mail information shall also be included. Files shall be submitted to the Government in .docx, .pdf, .xlsx or .pptx format. Please review the instructions carefully within the Vulcan platform call. If you still have additional questions about this Vulcan platform, you may send your queries to the Engage SOF team:
[email protected] . All other documents provided by the offeror shall be retained by the Government but not reviewed. Subject to change based upon agency need. b. 18 December 2025 – Vendor Presentations. Manufacturers/Vendors present their proposed white papers, equipment and demonstrate the equipment’s capabilities of interest. eSOF presentations will be conducted at SOFWERX, 1925 East 2nd Avenue, Suite 102, Tampa, Florida 33605. Specific coordination information will be provided when briefing dates and times are scheduled. Proceeding to the next portion is based solely upon best agency need and requirements. Subject to change based upon agency need. c. 2 January 2026 – Technical Evaluation Invitations. Invitations will be sent to select Manufacturers/Vendors to participate in the Technical Evaluation event. While sUMS Program will provide feedback to all Manufacturers/Vendors who participated in the eSOF presentations, only those devices that sUMS Program judges to have the best potential to meet the mission profile evaluation will be invited to participate in the Technical Evaluation event. All Manufacturers/Vendors will be provided a Vendor Loan Agreement (VLA) as sUMS Program will request a minimum of five (5) complete systems for the duration of the events with a designated device delivery date. Subject to change based upon agency need. d. 8 January 2026 - Manufacturers/Vendors Accept Invitations. Deadline for Manufacturers/Vendors to notify sUMS Program of their intent to participate in the Technical Evaluation and return the completed VLA for their devices and any associated items. Subject to change based upon agency need. e. 10 February 2026 – Device Delivery. Manufacturers/Vendors deliver (on-loan) fully functional devices and associated items for technical assessment at a location to be determined later. Manufacturers/Vendors also provide necessary technical information to support USSOCOM’s safety review process. Subject to change based upon agency need. f. 17 February – 17 March 2026 – TE Training. Manufacturers/Vendors train Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), sUMS evaluators and USSOCOM testers to support use of and technical evaluation of their device(s) at a location to be determined later. Training must include proper use of the device and troubleshooting. Manufacturers/Vendors will be expected to train the USSOCOM SMEs, evaluators and testers to the point where they can confirm expected levels of performance. Manufacturers/Vendors will be offered the opportunity to conduct the same training for operators participating in the Operational Test and Evaluation portion of sME 26-6. Subject to change based upon agency need. g. 17 February – 17 March 2026 – TE. USSOCOM SMEs, evaluators, and testers will conduct a TE of the Manufacturers/Vendors devices to ensure they perform to the standards and levels as presented. Manufacturers/Vendors may be asked to provide reach back support during TEs. Proceeding to the next portion is based solely upon best agency need and requirements. Subject to change based upon agency need. h. 8 June – 29 June 2025 – OT&E. USSOCOM evaluators, and testers conduct the OT&E with the participation of SOF operational personnel at a location to be determined later. Manufacturers/Vendors will be asked to conduct training of their devices during the first week but will not participate in the actual operator driven events conducted jointly by USSOCOM and the Joint Interoperability Test Command. Subject to change based upon agency need. i. 25 September 2025 – Device Return. All Manufacturers/Vendors equipment returned. Subject to change based upon agency need. 4. Disclaimers: THERE IS NO SOLICITATION PLANNED AT THIS TIME. This request for information does not constitute a request for proposals; submission of any information in response to this market research is purely voluntary; the Government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred; and the Government will not provide responses to any questions. Any submitter’s attention is directed to the fact that Government Support Contractor personnel may review and provide support to Government personnel when reviewing submissions. 5. Points of Contact: Any questions under this RFI must be emailed to
[email protected].