ONHS Report: FA9451-24-S-0001

TACTICAL Broad Agency Announcement (BAA)

Solicitation ID: FA9451-24-S-0001

Agency: AFRL/RD

Type: Combined Synopsis/Solicitation

Deadline: 2028-11-22T14:00:00 ET

Eligibility: Maybe (Dual Approval Required)

Funding: Anticipated total program funding of $499M, broken down as follows: FY24: $100M; FY25: $100M; FY26: $100M; FY27: $100M; FY28: $99M. This funding is for the entire program, not per individual award.

Doc Type: BAA

Clearance: TS/SCI

Program Manager: afrl.rdlb.tacticalbaa@us.af.mil

Last Updated: 2025-11-24 13:23

Analyzed File: TACTICAL BAA Announcement_20250328 update.pdf

Eligibility Reasoning

The FFRDC's sponsoring agency must first make a determination that the effort being proposed falls within the purpose, mission, general scope of effort, or special competency of the FFRDC, and that determination must be included in the FFRDC's proposal. In addition, the non-sponsoring agency (in this case AFRL) must make a determination that the work proposed would not place the FFRDC in direct competition with domestic private industry.

Note: This is an AI-generated summary...

Summary

This document is a five-year, $499 million Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), titled TACTICAL (FA9451-24-S-0001), from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Directed Energy Directorate (RD). Its purpose is to solicit research proposals to advance the state-of-the-art in directed energy technologies. The BAA operates through a "closed-call" process, meaning proposals are submitted in response to specific "Calls" issued periodically, not against the main BAA. The program has fourteen technical topic areas grouped into four main categories: Laser Systems (sources, beam control, integration, M&S, interaction effects, vulnerability), Space Domain Awareness (satellite characterization, alternate electro-optics, AI/autonomy), High Power Electromagnetics (HPEM) (modeling, sources, applications), and Wargaming. The BAA establishes a two-tiered solicitation process: "Standard Calls" open to all eligible offerors, and "Topic Area Group (TAG) Calls" restricted to pre-qualified vendors for urgent needs. Offerors must adhere to strict S&T Program Protection requirements, including screening for foreign influence, and may need security clearances up to Top Secret. The anticipated awards are FAR-based contracts such as Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee or Firm-Fixed-Price.

Overall Technical Areas

High Energy Laser SourcesLaser Beam Control & PropagationLaser System IntegrationLaser System Modeling & SimulationLaser Interaction TestingLaser Interaction ModelingLaser Vulnerability AssessmentSatellite Tracking & CharacterizationAdvanced Electro-Optical SensingAI for Space Domain AwarenessHPEM Effects & ModelingHPEM Sources & ComponentsHPEM System ApplicationsDirected Energy Wargaming

Probable LBNL Areas

CSAEESAESAETALDPSA

Focus Areas

Example Priorities:

Research, design, model, develop, test, and analyze innovative laser source technologies and associated technologies above and beyond the current state-of-the-art.
Research, design, model, develop, test, and analyze innovative solutions to the technical challenges associated with successfully projecting a laser beam to a distant target in various environments, including in-flight.
Research, design, model, develop, and test innovative solutions to integrate laser-system components into assemblies, subsystems, or full laser systems.
Plan and conduct laser interaction testing to evaluate laser material interactions, component failures, and target vulnerabilities.
Develop advanced computational methods for predicting the physical phenomenology resulting from high energy laser interactions.
Combine target vulnerability data from testing, target optical signature measurements, and effects models into a comprehensive vulnerability assessment to support mission studies.

Specific Technical Skills:

High-Energy LasersBeam ControlAtmospheric PropagationAero-OpticsSystems IntegrationThermal ManagementLaser Effects ModelingTarget Vulnerability AnalysisFiber Laser TechnologyTest & Evaluation

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Siyun Chen	0.73	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Fanting Kong	0.72	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Samuel Barber	0.72	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Vassilia Zorba	0.72	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Antoine Islegen-Wojdyla	0.72	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development
Mackinley Kath	0.72	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Qiang Du	0.71	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Costas P. Grigoropoulos	0.71	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Jayson Vavrek	0.71	PSA \| NSD \| ANP
Cameron Geddes	0.71	PSA \| Physical Sciences \| Accel Tech & AppPhysics

Example Priorities:

Develop, mature, and deliver algorithms, software/firmware, materials, supplies, and services necessary to conduct technology maturation for ground-based surveillance of space objects.
Leverage electromagnetic phenomena outside of the visible wavelengths and exploit those phenomena using hardware, algorithms, or novel techniques to collect and provide actionable information for space object information.
Leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to exploit electro-optical imagery (resolved and non-resolved), autonomously integrate multiple data sources, and decrease time to obtaining actionable information for SDA tasks.
Techniques for Initial Orbit Determination (IOD) and research to characterize and identify objects in Cislunar/XGEO space.
Multispectral, hyperspectral, spectroscopic, and polarimetric sensing for characterization of space objects.

Specific Technical Skills:

Space Domain Awareness (SDA)Electro-Optical SystemsSatellite CharacterizationOrbit DeterminationImage ProcessingAtmospheric Turbulence CompensationArtificial IntelligenceMachine LearningMultispectral SensingLiDAR/LADAR

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Shawn Tornga	0.73	LD \| LD \| ONHS
Nicola Falco	0.70	EESA \| CESD \| Integrated Ecosystem Sciences
Zhe Bai	0.69	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Edward Bethel	0.69	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Research
Alexander Sim	0.69	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Research
Florian Soom	0.69	EESA \| EG \| Geophysics Dept
Andre Santos	0.69	EESA \| CESD \| Integrated Ecosystem Sciences
Marco Salathe	0.69	PSA \| NSD \| ANP
Zhao Hao	0.68	EESA \| EG \| Geochemistry Dept
Hasita Veluri	0.68	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science

Example Priorities:

Characterize the effectiveness of potential HPEM weapons systems by developing and running effectiveness tools and generating vulnerability data to feed those tools.
Conduct research and development on advanced compact rep-rate pulsed power, as well as alternatives to high-power vacuum-tube sources.
Design, develop, and demonstrate HPEM technologies for future HPEM systems by addressing key technical barriers.
Integration of disparate technologies for the fielding of new HPEM systems and weapons.
Technologies and efforts considered are significant size reductions for all parts of the HPEM system, materials modeling, prime power, high-energy-density capacitors, permanent magnets, transmission lines, switches, and non-linear transmission lines.

Specific Technical Skills:

High-Power Electromagnetics (HPEM)Pulsed Power SystemsMicrowave SourcesEffects ModelingElectronic WarfareAntenna DesignDigital EngineeringCompact Prime PowerSystems IntegrationMaterials Modeling

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Qiang Du	0.71	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Soren Prestemon	0.71	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Olga Shapoval	0.71	PSA \| ATAP \| Advanced Modeling Prog
Cameron Geddes	0.70	PSA \| Physical Sciences \| Accel Tech & AppPhysics
Siyun Chen	0.70	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Marco Garten	0.70	PSA \| ATAP \| Advanced Modeling Prog
Axel Huebl	0.70	PSA \| ATAP \| Advanced Modeling Prog
Stepan Bulanov	0.70	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Meriam Gay Bautista-Jurney	0.70	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Zhe Bai	0.70	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science

Example Priorities:

Conduct and improve Modeling, Simulation, and Analysis (MS&A), Studies, and Wargaming models and processes, for directed energy (DE) weapon systems.
This area specifically focuses on campaign-level, engagement-level, and mission-level wargaming.
Develop and conduct Military Utility Assessments (MUA), specifically for DE systems.
Enhance and modernize MS&A and wargaming methods with man-in-the-loop capabilities.
Develop and enhance scenarios integrated into the Advanced Framework for Simulation, Integration and Modeling (AFSIM), or other M&S tools.

Specific Technical Skills:

WargamingModeling & SimulationMission AnalysisMilitary Utility AssessmentAFSIMCampaign-Level ModelingTactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTP)High-Performance ComputingTest Scenario DevelopmentDirected Energy Systems

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Alexander Sim	0.71	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Research
Shawn Tornga	0.70	LD \| LD \| ONHS
Samuel Williams	0.70	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Edward Bethel	0.69	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Research
Zhe Bai	0.69	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Alex Newkirk	0.69	ETA \| Building Technology & Urban Systems \| Bldg & Industrial App Dpt
Louis-Benoit Desroches	0.68	ETA \| Energy Analysis & Environmental Impacts \| Energy Efficiency Studies
Sunhee Baik	0.68	ETA \| Energy Analysis & Environmental Impacts \| Energy Markets & Policy
Jean-Luc Vay	0.68	PSA \| ATAP \| Advanced Modeling Prog
Brandon Cook	0.68	CSA \| NERSC \| HPC Technology Department

Potential LBNL PIs (Overall)

Note on PI Matching: These suggestions are generated through an AI-driven semantic analysis of LBNL staff profiles.

Name	Score	Organization
Davide Terzani	0.78	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center · Laser Interaction Modeling
Xianglei Mao	0.77	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt · Laser Interaction Testing
Hai-En Tsai	0.76	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center · High Energy Laser Sources
William Fawley	0.76	PSA \| ATAP \| Advanced Modeling Prog · Laser System Modeling & Simulation
Russell Wilcox	0.76	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · Laser System Integration
Hao Ding	0.76	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center · Satellite Tracking & Characterization
Alessio Amodio	0.75	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · Laser Beam Control & Propagation
Mengjie Yu	0.74	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Advanced Electro-Optical Sensing
Zhi Jackie Yao	0.74	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · HPEM System Applications
Shawn Tornga	0.73	LD \| LD \| ONHS · AI for Space Domain Awareness

Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)

c. Export Control: Information involved in this research effort is subject to Export Control (International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) 22 CFR Parts 120-130, or Export Administration Regulations (EAR) 15 CFR Parts 730-774). A Certified DD Form 2345, Militarily Critical Technical Data Agreement, will be required to be submitted with proposal.