Contracts · Drones
Army limits its brigade drone prototype project to Drone OTA Consortium members
The Army anticipates a flight gauntlet at Redstone Arsenal from Oct. 26 to Nov. 20, and only complete systems can advance to it.
The Army wants off-the-shelf reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition systems, sub-components and software "ready for rapid prototyping, operational assessment, and potential transition to production."1, 4 Only current, approved members of the Department of War's Drone Other Transaction Authority (OTA) Consortium can respond to its Brigade Uncrewed Aircraft System (BDE UAS) Prototype Project request. Their whitepapers close at 11:59 p.m. Central on Wednesday, Oct. 7.1–2
Army's members-only brigade drone request follows two August Drone OTA Consortium requests
Department of War's Drone Other Transaction Authority (OTA) Consortium, a vehicle for prototype and production OTAs. Dates posted on SAM.gov, 2026, except the Oct. 7 close.
Brigade UAS is strictly limited to current, approved consortium members. A non-member can contribute as a software teammate on a member's whitepaper.
Source: SAM.gov notices W58RGZ-26-2-SN01, RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-001, RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-002 and RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-003, with the Oct. 5, 2026 questions and answers. Data as of Oct. 7, 2026.
The department invited applications to the newly established consortium in May as a vehicle for awarding prototype and production OTAs.5 Brigade UAS follows two Army requests posted through it in August: one for the Launched Effects Prototype Project and one for unmanned ground vehicles at the GroundBreaker 1 demonstration.6–7
The Army will review whitepapers for sub-components, but "only complete systems will qualify to pass on to a Flight Demonstration." It anticipates holding that demonstration, which it also calls a gauntlet, from Monday, Oct. 26, to Friday, Nov. 20, at Redstone Arsenal, Ala. The Army will tell invited vendors "as soon as possible" after the request closes. One industry question says Section II of the request seeks "complete Group 3 UAS systems."3 Neither the notice's description nor the Army's answers give a prototype value or quantity.1
A company outside the consortium can still contribute to a member's whitepaper as a software teammate.3 Inside it, pool memberships currently aren't visible to all members, and the Army tells non-traditional (Pool 3) members to contact primes directly.3, 7 A viable whitepaper not selected for immediate award stays in play: the consortium retains it for up to three years, for "rapid awards if funding and requirements align."5
Clarification, October 7, 2026: The headline changed from “Army anticipates Oct. 26 start for Brigade UAS prototype flight gauntlet at Redstone” to “Army limits its brigade drone prototype project to Drone OTA Consortium members”. The summary now reads: “The Army anticipates a flight gauntlet at Redstone Arsenal from Oct. 26 to Nov. 20, and only complete systems can advance to it.” Revision notice clarified October 11, 2026.
Clarification, October 18, 2026: This brief's Sources now include the notice's SAM.gov record for the whitepaper deadline. The deadline, 11:59 p.m. Central on Oct. 7, is unchanged.
Sources (7)
- SAM.gov: Request for Whitepaper, Brigade Uncrewed Aircraft System (BDE UAS) Prototype Project, RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-003 sam.gov
- SAM.gov: RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-003 notice record sam.gov
- SAM.gov: RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-003 Questions and Answers, as of 5 October 2026 (PDF) sam.gov
- SAM.gov: RFW-DOTAC-ARMY-2026-003 contracting office record sam.gov
- sam.gov sam.gov
- sam.gov sam.gov
- sam.gov sam.gov