Purchase of Skydio Aircraft and Accessories

This federal Request for Quotation (RFQ), reference number 15DDHQ26Q00000213, is issued by the Department of Justice’s Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Aviation Division. The solicitation seeks quotes for Skydio unmanned aerial systems (UAS), support equipment, and subscription service plans. Specific deliverables include eight Skydio X1 Starter Kits, eight Skydio NightSense infrared attachments, eight 12-month Skydio X10 Patrol-LED DFR cellular data plans, four Skydio R10 Patrol Kits, and four Skydio R10 Plans. All items must be delivered to the DEA Aviation Operations Center in Fort Worth, Texas by December 31, 2026. The solicitation is not set aside for small businesses and incorporates standard federal contract provisions. These clauses include System for Award Management (SAM) maintenance, basic safeguarding of covered contractor information systems, and prohibitions on utilizing ByteDance applications and specific Chinese-manufactured telecommunications or video surveillance equipment. Quotations are due to the designated Contracting Officer by September 14, 2026, at 4:00 PM Eastern Time.

This federal procurement document is a Competition Restriction Justification (Control No. D-26-SG-0067) issued by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Office of Acquisitions on behalf of its Aviation Division. The document justifies restricting competition to brand-name Skydio® X10 drones and associated accessories—including spotlights, batteries, night sense technology, and streaming software—to support law enforcement operations while ensuring officer safety. The estimated delivery is set for December 30, 2026, or sooner, with Atlantic Diving Supply, Inc. (ADS) identified as the preferred distributor for the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Skydio. Market research conducted by the Aviation Division, which included product demonstrations from competitors such as Brink, PDW, Anduril, and Hoverfly Technologies, concluded that the Skydio® X10 is the only National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) compliant, U.S.-manufactured drone that meets the DEA’s strict technical requirements. Specifically, it is the only system offering integrated, 360-degree optical artificial intelligence (AI) collision avoidance and "fly-and-forget" autonomous flight capabilities. Additionally, DEA technical personnel are already trained on the Skydio® platform; transitioning to a different system would be operationally inefficient and cost-prohibitive. To ensure fair opportunity, the DEA will post a combined synopsis/solicitation alongside this justification on SAM.gov. The Contracting Officer will verify that the anticipated cost is fair and reasonable using GSA pricing and historical purchase data. The DEA will continue conducting market research to monitor emerging technologies for future requirements.