42,000,000

Concepts

• southampton
• air-sea rescue
• mca
• contract modification
• search and rescue helicopters
• additional search capacity
• english channel
• coastguard agency
• uk coastguard search
• number of small boats

Location

United Kingdom:

Description

The Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is putting in place additional search capacity in its Coastguard aviation service to provide urgently needed increased situational awareness. The contract modification will provide a dedicated supplementary search capability to support the UK Coastguard Search and Rescue Helicopter Service (UKSARH) by providing this additional situational awareness in the English Channel. This will be delivered using a combination of crewed and uncrewed planes. The aircraft will be operated from or near the existing Lydd search and rescue (SAR) base so as to be able to work closely with the SAR helicopter based there and make best use of the existing infrastructure under the UKSARH service. The contract modification will be in effect from 01 March 2022 for three years, to align with the start of the replacement contractual arrangements to the current UKSARH service. An extension option of up to two years has been included should the arrangements that replace the current UKSARH service not be ready in time.

Total Quantity or Scope

The UK has seen a seen an increase in the number of small boats crossing the English Channel which the MCA could not have foreseen when the UKSARH contract was awarded. Aerial patrols over the Channel are crucial to our search and rescue response. The situational awareness that the UKSARH service provides enables Coastguards to determine the status of small boats crossing the Channel and to prioritise responses to those boats at most risk. As the number of small boat crossings have increased over the course of 2021, the requirement to provide extended searches of the Channel over consecutive days, and sometimes weeks, has also increased. This has placed increased demands on HM Coastguard’s existing aerial search and rescue assets. The MCA has therefore determined that a dedicated Channel search capability is needed to provide the level of situational awareness required. The new aircraft will conduct regular, sometimes extended, patrols of the Channel to provide up to date and accurate information on crossings being attempted. This information will be used by HM Coastguard to enhance the coordination of rescues using existing air and surface assets. Given the urgency of the requirement and that the solution will be integrated with existing UKSARH assets and infrastructure, the MCA is seeking to introduce this capability as a modification to the UKSARH contract. This requirement will ultimately be met by the services provided by the supplier of the UK Second-Generation Search and Rescue Aviation programme, the procurement process for which is currently underway (FTS reference 2021/S 000-004655). The MCA is modifying the UKSARH contract pursuant to Regulation 72 (1) (c), on the basis that the need for modification has been brought about by circumstances which a diligent contracting authority could not have foreseen. Migrants crossing the channel in significant numbers was not an issue the HM Coastguard faced in 2013 when the UKSARH contract was awarded, nor was it anticipated that it would become an issue; the problem is largely unprecedented for the UK and has increased exponentially in a short space of time. This change does not alter the overall nature of the contract; the original specification included extensive requirements for a search capability. Moreover, this is search with a view to locating individuals in need of rescue, which fits within the overarching scope of the UKSARH contract. Finally, the price of this modification, valued at £35m ex VAT for the three years of the change and an additional £16m ex VAT if the two-year extension option is used, does not exceed 50% of the value of the UKSARH contract over its life at £1.6 billion ex VAT.

Award Detail

CPV Codes

• 60443100 - Air-sea rescue services
• 35612500 - Search and rescue helicopters

Legal Justification

The MCA is modifying the UKSARH contract pursuant to Regulation 72 (1) (c), on the basis that the need for modification has been brought about by circumstances which a diligent contracting authority could not have foreseen. Migrants crossing the channel in significant numbers was not an issue the HM Coastguard faced in 2013 when the UKSARH contract was awarded, nor was it anticipated that it would become an issue; the problem is largely unprecedented for the UK and has increased exponentially in a short space of time.

Other Information

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