---
title: "School of Biology/SMRU: Aircraft for the Aerial Survey of Grey Seal Breeding Colonies 2025"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-05295a"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05295a"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05295a.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05295a.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS"
published: "2025-09-23"
---

# School of Biology/SMRU: Aircraft for the Aerial Survey of Grey Seal Breeding Colonies 2025

Buyer: UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-05295a

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## Summary

The University of St Andrews, located in Guardbridge, United Kingdom, recently concluded a procurement process titled "School of Biology/SMRU: Aircraft for the Aerial Survey of Grey Seal Breeding Colonies 2025". This initiative falls under the services category, specifically focusing on the hire of aircraft with crew (CPV code: 60424100). The procurement process followed an open procedure and was completed with the issuance of the contract on 25th August 2025. The awarded contract, valued at £145,972.32, was granted to Cheshire Flying Services Limited, trading as Ravenair. The surveys are conducted from mid-September 2025 to early January 2026, covering grey seal breeding sites around Scotland and along the east coast of England.

This tender offers substantial opportunities for businesses specializing in aviation services, particularly those with capabilities in providing twin-engine aircraft and crew for survey operations. As the project involves a significant number of flights to remote areas, suppliers capable of facilitating extended aerial surveys with necessary equipment, such as an aerial camera system, will find this engagement beneficial. SMEs like Cheshire Flying Services Limited have successfully navigated this procurement, indicating that smaller entities with relevant expertise can effectively compete. Such projects can help businesses expand their portfolios and strengthen their presence in the public sector, fostering significant business growth.

## Notice

In September to December 2025, SMRU will carry out repeat aerial surveys of around 80 grey seal breeding sites around Scotland and along the east coast of England (with the aim to survey each colony 4 or 5 times throughout the season). We therefore require a twin-engine aircraft (with survey pilot) with 4-5 hours available flight time excluding reserve fuel time.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

In September to December 2025, SMRU will carry out repeat aerial surveys of around 80 grey seal breeding sites around Scotland and along the east coast of England (with the aim to survey each colony 4 or 5 times throughout the season). We therefore require a twin-engine aircraft (with survey pilot) with 4-5 hours available flight time excluding reserve fuel time. Several flights will be to and from relatively remote airports such as Stornoway and Kirkwall. The aircraft must accommodate two SMRU staff and SMRU's aerial camera system (PAS150). Surveys will be carried out from mid-September 2025 until early January 2026 with 9 or 10 separate rounds of surveys (most of these taking 3 to 4 days each) spread through the season with approximately 10-day intervals between rounds. The total flying time is expected to be around 120 hours (which would probably mean around 135 hours engine time). We estimate a total number of approx. 40 flights conducted on around 30 different days will be needed. Overnights at various airports (e.g. Stornoway, Kirkwall, Perth, Norwich) will be required. Please see ITT for full details. Additional information: All tenders for the University of St Andrews are administered through our eTendering System (InTend).To Express an Interest please go to our tender website at https://intendhost.co.uk/universityofstandrews Please note that 'Notes of Interest' placed via PCS (Public Contracts Scotland) are not automatically accepted

Renewal: 2 x 12 month extensions subject to satisfactory annual review.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058777-2025 |
| Notice type | Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 23 Sep 2025 |
| Submission deadline | 2 Jul 2025 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 24 Aug 2025 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £300,000 |
| Lots value | £300,000 |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £145,972 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Cancelled |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS |
| Locality | GUARDBRIDGE |
| Post town | Kirkcaldy |
| Postcode | KY16 0US |
| Country | Scotland |
| ITL 1 | TLM Scotland |
| ITL 2 | TLM0 Eastern Scotland |
| ITL 3 | TLM01 Clackmannanshire and Fife |
| Local authority | Fife |
| Electoral ward | Tay Bridgehead |
| Westminster constituency | North East Fife |
| Delivery location | TLM72 Clackmannanshire and Fife |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | CHESHIRE FLYING SERVICES LIMITED TRADING AS RAVENAIR |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 34 - Transport equipment and auxiliary products to transportation
- 60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

### Codes

- 34711300 - Piloted aircraft
- 60424100 - Hire of aircraft with crew

## Release History

- 23 Sep 2025 at 09:18 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058777-2025
- 30 May 2025 at 08:54 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/028660-2025

## Notice URLs

- http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/procurement/
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000799694
- https://in-tendhost.co.uk/universityofstandrews
- https://intendhost.co.uk/universityofstandrews

## 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-05295a. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05295a.json.