Jane Edwards 
- AT&T has received a $74.3 million FAA task order under an enterprise network program
- The task order was issued as a direct, undefinitized award
- FENS seeks to provide FAA with secure communications and IT services
AT&T Enterprise Services has received a $74.3 million task order from the Federal Aviation Administration to begin early planning and development work under the FAA Enterprise Network Services, or FENS, program.
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In an award notice posted Wednesday, FAA said it awarded the task order under a single-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for FENS using the agency’s Acquisition Management System waiver authority tied to its Brand New Air Traffic Control System, or BNATCS, initiative.
What Is the Scope of the FAA Task Order?
The FENS task order covers early start-up planning and development activities and represents the only funded effort under the broader FENS contract vehicle at this time, according to the award notice. FAA classified the underlying IDIQ as undefinitized, meaning the agency expects a multibillion-dollar contract to result once terms are finalized, with a period of performance of up to 15 years.
FAA cited a compressed timeline tied to the BNATCS deadline, limited availability of Tier-1 telecommunications providers and AT&T’s prior FENS-related experience as justification for the direct award.
What Is the FENS Program?
FENS is a program that intends to provide FAA with secure, highly available communications, information management functions and capabilities supporting the agency’s aviation safety mission, according to the award notice. The program also covers administrative systems access, including email, payroll and online training platforms.
FENS services will be segmented into distinct networking capabilities, including critical services, administrative services and essential services, along with other categories the government may define. The program is also required to support secure communications both within these segmented capabilities and between them and external networks, including the public internet.
What Other Public Sector Initiatives Has AT&T Recently Undertaken?
The FENS task order follows several other recent moves by AT&T in the federal and public-safety space. In April, the company and the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration reached a $2 billion agreement to enhance the FirstNet nationwide public safety broadband network by accelerating 5G deployment and expanding mission-critical connectivity for first responders.
Building on that momentum, AT&T introduced its Quantum Resilient SD-WAN service in May, an offering designed to equip networks with post-quantum cryptography and deliver secure connectivity to address evolving cyberthreats.
The company has also pushed into next-generation sensing capabilities. In July, AT&T and Ericsson demonstrated drone detection using network sensing over a live 5G network, a capability generally associated with future 6G systems.
