Aircraft Defensive Electro-optical Protection Technologies (ADEPT)
This solicitation funds development of aircraft electro-optical defensive countermeasure technologies, including expendable, directed-energy, and other novel solutions, for protection of U.S. aircraft and aircrew in contested environments.
⚑ Federal contract solicitation; applicant restrictions apply. · Defense/aircraft countermeasure technology program. · Not a set-aside. · Check solicitation for DoD SAFE submission requirements and amendment-driven page limit changes.
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 45 partial | funds applied research; prototyping/demonstration stage; deep-tech content |
| IPPRA | 15 none | university cannot apply directly (ineligible) |
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 15 none | university cannot apply directly (ineligible) |
Description
22 October 2026 Amendment 3- Solicitation amended to add Q&A 2 attachment. 16 October 2026 Amendment 2- Solicitation amended to revise the technical proposal page limit for Technical Area 2 from 15 pages to 20 pages and to identify 06 November 2026, 12:00 PM (Noon) Eastern Time as the deadline for requesting DoD SAFE link for proposal submission. Also, adding a Q&A attachment. 28 September 2026 Amendment 1- Solicitation amended to revise technical proposal page limit to 15 pages per Technical Area. In support of the AFRL Information and Spectrum Dominance Directorate (AFRL/RF), the objective of the ADEPT effort is to develop pre-emptive or reactive countermeasure solutions —including expendable, directed energy, and novel developmental solutions in the EO spectrum—to protect U.S. aircraft and aircrew in contested environments. The ADEPT program is divided into two separate technical areas: Hardware & Executable Analysis of Threats (HEAT) Advanced Countermeasure Engineering (ACE)
Eligibility
Applicant restrictions (federal contract). Set-aside: No Set aside used. Notice type: Solicitation. Organization: DEPT OF DEFENSE / DEPT OF THE AIR FORCE / FA2377 USAF AFMC AFRL PZL AFRL RYKS.
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Proposal shell · Department of Defense (BAA-style) conventions SEE A DOD EXAMPLE →
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