---
title: "714928467 - AESAS 2026 - Provision of Aircraft Engineering Support and Airfield Services at Royal Naval Air Stations Yeovilton and Culdrose"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "MINISTRY OF DEFENCE"
published: "2026-04-02"
---

# 714928467 - AESAS 2026 - Provision of Aircraft Engineering Support and Airfield Services at Royal Naval Air Stations Yeovilton and Culdrose

Buyer: MINISTRY OF DEFENCE  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9

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## Summary

The Ministry of Defence, a central government public authority located in Portsmouth, United Kingdom, is overseeing the procurement process for the contract titled "AESAS 2026 - Provision of Aircraft Engineering Support and Airfield Services at Royal Naval Air Stations Yeovilton and Culdrose". This involves aircraft maintenance services in the defence and security sector. The process had reached the award stage on 2nd April 2026, with Serco Limited selected as the supplier for a 1 + 1 year contract valued at approximately £14,879,505.20. The procurement was conducted through a direct award method due to the unique operational expertise Serco holds, deemed crucial for continuity and efficiency in ongoing operations at these air stations.

This tender represents substantial growth opportunities primarily for large-scale enterprises experienced in defence services, particularly those specialising in helicopter repair and maintenance. Although Serco Limited was chosen for its established expertise in this context, related businesses could aim to build similar competencies and align themselves with the intricate requirements of national defence contracts. Such enterprises could potentially compete in future tenders, especially if new contracts arise or extensions are required. Opportunities exist for companies that can offer innovative solutions and efficient operational models within the demanding constraints of technical and safety standards applicable in defence sectors.

## Notice

The Royal Navy, part of the UK Ministry of Defence, intends to award a 1 + 1 year contract to Serco for the Air Engineering Support and Airfield Services (AESAS). As a covered procurement, this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Procurement Act 2023. In the circumstances, the authority may award this public contract directly in accordance with section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023. The applicable direct award justification is that set out in paragraph 7 of Schedule 5 of the Act. This justification applies because the AESAS contract concerns the supply of services by the existing supplier which are intended as an extension to existing services in circumstances where: a change in supplier would result in the contracting authority receiving services that are different from, or incompatible with, the existing services. Namely, a different supplier would lack Serco's (i) deeply embedded operational expertise and established relationships at Yeovilton and Culdrose, and (ii) suitably trained and experienced staff. And b. the difference or incompatibility would result in disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and/or maintenance. In particular, the difference in service provided by a different supplier would result in: i. unacceptable risks to performance and safety resulting from the need to rebuild critical trust and operational knowledge; ii. the contracting authority needing to invest additional resources in order to retrain staff, modify existing systems, and/or purchase additional equipment; iii. a risk to the continued readiness and support to MCT aircraft, which is critical to national defence; iv. significant adjustments to the Contractor's Quality Management System, resulting in operational inefficiencies and increased costs; v. disruption to coordination and maintenance of ground support and equipment provision at RNAS Yeovilton; and vi. increase in lead times in returning airframes to flying operations at RNAS Culdrose and reduction in overall numbers of available aircraft in the forward fleet.

### Procurement Information

The Royal Navy, part of the UK Ministry of Defence, intends to award a 1 + 1 year contract with a value of PS13,267,000 to Serco for the Air Engineering Support and Airfield Services (AESAS). As a covered procurement, this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Procurement Act 2023. In the circumstances, the authority may award this public contract directly in accordance with section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023. The applicable direct award justification is that set out in paragraph 7 of Schedule 5 of the Act. This justification applies because the AESAS contract concerns the supply of services by the existing supplier which are intended as an extension to existing services in circumstances where: a change in supplier would result in the contracting authority receiving services that are different from, or incompatible with, the existing services. Namely, a different supplier would lack Serco's (i) deeply embedded operational expertise and established relationships at Yeovilton and Culdrose, and (ii) suitably trained and experienced staff. And b. the difference or incompatibility would result in disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and/or maintenance. In particular, the difference in service provided by a different supplier would result in: unacceptable risks to performance and safety resulting from the need to rebuild critical trust and operational knowledge; the contracting authority needing to invest additional resources in order to retrain staff, modify existing systems, and/or purchase additional equipment; a risk to the continued readiness and support to MCT aircraft, which is critical to national defence; significant adjustments to the Contractor's Quality Management System, resulting in operational inefficiencies and increased costs; disruption to coordination and maintenance of ground support and equipment provision at RNAS Yeovilton; and increase in lead times in returning airframes to flying operations at RNAS Culdrose and reduction in overall numbers of available aircraft in the forward fleet.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030821-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Direct award |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Planning, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 2 Apr 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 1 Dec 2025 |
| Award date | 16 Sep 2025 |
| Contract period | 1 Apr 2026 - 31 Mar 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £12,200,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £14,879,505 |
| Contracts value | £14,879,505 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Active, Pending |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | MINISTRY OF DEFENCE |
| Locality | PORTSMOUTH |
| Post town | Portsmouth |
| Postcode | PO2 8BY |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ3 Hampshire and Isle of Wight |
| ITL 3 | TLJ31 Portsmouth |
| Local authority | Portsmouth |
| Electoral ward | Nelson |
| Westminster constituency | Portsmouth North |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | SERCO |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 50 - Repair and maintenance services

### Codes

- 50211100 - Aircraft maintenance services
- 50212000 - Repair and maintenance services of helicopters

## Release History

- 2 Apr 2026 at 11:09 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030821-2026
- 23 Mar 2026 at 14:26 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/026320-2026
- 16 Sep 2025 at 13:21 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/056981-2025
- 22 May 2025 at 09:21 - Planning - UK1 - Pipeline Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024551-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030821-2026
  2nd April 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/026320-2026
  23rd March 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/056981-2025
  16th September 2025 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024551-2025
  22nd May 2025 - Pipeline notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14280
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14281
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14282
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14283
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14284
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14285
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14286
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14287
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14288
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14289
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14290
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14291
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14292
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14293
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-14294

## Notice URLs

- https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051cd9.json.