Request for Information / Sources Sought - Airshow Management
Sources Sought from DEPT OF THE AIR FORCE • DEPT OF DEFENSE. Place of performance: MD. Response deadline: Mar 19, 2026. Industry: NAICS 711320 • PSC R499.
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Description
This is a Request for Information (RFI) only. This RFI is issued for market research purposes to gain a better understanding of the industry’s capabilities to provide comprehensive, turnkey airshow planning, management, and execution services. The Air Force District of Washington (AFDW) is seeking to identify qualified sources and best practices for potentially contracting these services for a large-scale, public airshow at a military installation within the National Capital Region.
Please provide your response via email to the POCs identified with the subject line: “Response to RFI for AFDW Airshow Planning Services.” Please limit responses to a total of 15 pages, including the cover page. The capabilities statement and answers to the RFI questions should be in Adobe PDF format. Marketing materials are not requested.
This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP), Request for Quotation (RFQ), or Invitation for Bid (IFB). The Government is not soliciting proposals and will not accept offers at this time. The Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this RFI. All information submitted in response to this RFI is voluntary, and the Government will not provide a response to any submission. The information provided will be used for market research and acquisition planning purposes only.
Background: The Air Force District of Washington (AFDW) periodically hosts a major airshow that is open to the public. These events serve as a critical community outreach platform, showcasing the heritage and mission of the United States Air Force. The planning and execution of such an event requires a significant and specialized effort, encompassing a wide range of logistical, safety, marketing, and administrative functions. AFDW is exploring the feasibility of partnering with an industry expert to manage these efforts, allowing military personnel to remain focused on their primary duties while ensuring the airshow is executed to the highest professional standard.
Objective: The objective of this RFI is to gather information from industry on the capabilities, approaches, and cost structures associated with providing turnkey airshow management services. AFDW is interested in understanding the full spectrum of services available, from initial concept development through post-event analysis. Responses will help shape a potential future acquisition strategy and statement of work.
Requested Information: Interested parties are requested to provide a capabilities statement that addresses the questions in the attached document. Your response should also include the following information on the first page:
- Company Name and Address
- Company Website
- Unique Entity ID (UEI) and CAGE Code
- Primary Point of Contact (Name, Title, Email, and Phone Number)
- Business Size and Socio-Economic Status (e.g., Small Business, Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB), 8(a), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), etc.)
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BidPulsar Analysis
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The DEPT OF THE AIR FORCE (Air Force District of Washington) issued this Sources Sought/RFI (Solicitation AIRSHOW-001) to conduct market research on comprehensive, turnkey airshow planning, management, and execution services for a large-scale, public airshow at a military installation within the National Capital Region. Responses are due by 2026-03-19 21:00 UTC and must be emailed to the POCs with the subject line “Response to RFI for AFDW Airshow Planning Services.” Submissions are limited to 15 pages total (including cover) and must be provided as an Adobe PDF; marketing materials are explicitly not requested. AFDW is seeking industry approaches, best practices, and cost structures to inform a potential future acquisition strategy and statement of work (this is not an RFP/RFQ/IFB and no offers will be accepted).
AFDW is trying to determine whether and how to partner with an industry expert to manage the full lifecycle of a major, public airshow (concept development through post-event analysis), covering the logistical, safety, marketing, and administrative workload so military personnel can remain focused on primary duties while maintaining a high professional execution standard.
- Program-level airshow planning, management, and execution as a comprehensive turnkey service
- Initial concept development through post-event analysis (full lifecycle support)
- Logistics management for a large-scale, public airshow at a military installation in the National Capital Region
- Safety-related planning and execution support (as part of turnkey management)
- Marketing and community outreach support functions (as part of airshow management scope)
- Administrative functions required to plan and run the event
- Development of approaches/best practices and articulation of cost structures for AFDW acquisition planning
- Email submission to the POCs identified in the notice package/attachment with subject line: “Response to RFI for AFDW Airshow Planning Services.”
- Single Adobe PDF that includes the capabilities statement and answers to the RFI questions
- Total response length no more than 15 pages, including cover page
- First page includes: Company Name and Address
- First page includes: Company Website
- First page includes: UEI and CAGE Code
- First page includes: Primary POC (Name, Title, Email, Phone Number)
- First page includes: Business Size and Socio-Economic Status (e.g., Small Business, WOSB, 8(a), SDVOSB, etc.)
- Exclude marketing materials (explicitly not requested)
- Review and respond to the questions in the attached document (download link provided in the notice)
Source coverage notes
Some notices publish limited source detail. Confirm these points before final bid/no-bid decisions.
- POC names/emails and the specific RFI questions are in the attachment; the brief does not include their contents
- Airshow location (which NCR installation) not specified
- Period of performance/start-end dates not provided
- Any estimated airshow date/timing not provided
- Expected event size/attendance and scope complexity details not provided
- Set-aside/business preference not stated
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