ECCAIRS.2 - E2 MIDAS - Maintenance, Infrastructure, Development and Application Support

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is procuring contractors to provide continuous maintenance, infrastructure, development, cloud and application support for the ECCAIRS 2 aviation safety occurrence reporting platform under an open public procurement framework. The estimated maximum framework value is €13 million with a maximum duration of 48 months; award will follow a best price-quality ratio (50% quality / 50% price) and EASA may conclude up to three framework contracts ranked in cascade. The procedure is a single lot with mandatory selection requirements including minimum financial thresholds (average annual turnover above €4 million and professional indemnity insurance of at least €2 million) and technical references; detailed obligations, security and service levels are in the tender specifications and annexes. Tenders must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission) by 4 December 2026 at 11:00 Europe/Berlin.

What it funds

Scope at a glance

Framework contract to provide maintenance, infrastructure, development and application support for the ECCAIRS 2 aviation safety reporting platform. Work covers software development and testing, cloud/DevSecOps, operations and monitoring, SOC/vulnerability follow-up, service desk/ticketing, training, documentation and stakeholder onboarding.

Who can apply

Eligible applicants

Commercial IT service suppliers and consortia (including subcontractors) able to deliver end-to-end IT services: software development, cloud/DevSecOps, security operations, database and application support and training. Procurements are open to economic operators established in EU Member States and specified eligible third countries listed in the tender documents.

Contract terms & selection

Duration and award

Deadlines and practical info

Key dates

Submissions are electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Tender documents (invitation, specifications, draft contract, annexes including technical specs, financial offer form and security appendices) are published on the procedure page F&T Portal - tender page 1.

What to prepare

Essentials for a compliant tender

Evaluation uses weighted technical (50%) and financial (50%) scores; technical threshold and minimum sub-scores apply (see tender specifications). The financial score is based on a weighted scenario of monthly workload across profiles.

Footnotes

1. 1Full procurement documents, annexes and submission instructions are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal tender page: ec.europa.eu

Opportunity summary

What the contracting authority wants

Key technical scope and mandatory elements

Procurement and contractual model

Who may apply and eligibility

Document set and submission

All procurement documents (Invitation to tender, Tender specifications, Annexes 1-12, Draft contract and appendices, Financial Offer Form, Technical Specifications, Technical Annexes) are published in English on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Submissions must be made exclusively electronically via the eSubmission application (EU Login / PIC). Required attachments include the Declaration on Honour (Annex 2), Annex 6 Financial Offer (xls and pdf), Annex 9 Technical Specifications, Annex 11 Profiles, Annex 14/15 selection templates, Annex 13 economic & financial capacity and evidence where requested, draft contract acknowledgement, and other annexes listed in Annex 1. File format, size and naming rules apply as specified in the Portal system requirements. The Portal link is available from the call page Funding & Tenders Portal - this call 1.

Estimated contract value, duration and ordering

Award and evaluation criteria (summary)

Service levels, operational requirements and security

Mandatory templates and key annexes (selection)

Evaluation and award process (stages)

Eligibility, capacity and minimum selection requirements

Consortium and subcontracting

Financials and pricing model

Service levels and reporting

Security, data protection and hosting

Templates and application structure

Application checklist (minimum)

Summary: what this opportunity is about

ECCAIRS.2 - E2 MIDAS is a multi-year procurement to deliver maintenance, infrastructure and cloud operations, continued development and enhancement, application and operational support, security/SOC capability and training/documentation to ensure continuity and evolution of the ECCAIRS 2 aviation safety reporting ecosystem. The contracting authority seeks experienced IT services suppliers or consortia capable of delivering agile development, secure cloud operations (Azure), full lifecycle release and deployment support, SOC and vulnerability management, multi-stakeholder onboarding and internationalisation, and user training and documentation. The tender is an open procedure, electronic submission only, with an estimated procedure value of €13,000,000 and a maximum FWC duration of 48 months. Detailed technical, financial and contractual requirements are provided in the tender specifications, technical annexes, draft contract and security appendices. Apply via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission, EU Login required) Funding & Tenders Portal - ECCAIRS.2 E2 MIDAS call 1.

Footnotes

1. 1Portal access and eSubmission technical guidance, system requirements and quick guides are available via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. See the call documents and eSubmission Quick Guide on the call webpage.

Executive summary

This is a high value EU public procurement tender, not a grant scheme. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency is seeking one or more contractors to provide continuous maintenance, infrastructure, development, cloud and application support for the ECCAIRS 2 aviation safety occurrence reporting platform. The estimated maximum framework contract value is €13 million, with a maximum duration of 48 months. The procurement uses an open procedure and applies a best price quality ratio with equal weighting of quality and price. 1

The opportunity is commercially relevant to established IT service providers, software engineering companies, cloud and DevSecOps specialists, aviation technology providers, and consortia able to demonstrate business critical system support experience, financial capacity, security capability and access to appropriately qualified personnel.

The authoritative portal data identifies 4 December 2026 at 11:00 Europe/Berlin as the tender submission deadline. The separate date shown in the supplied metadata as 1 January 2026 appears inconsistent with the official call details and should not be relied upon.

Opportunity identification

The contracting authority is the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, headquartered in Cologne, Germany. The procedure reference is EASA/2026/OP/0015 and the TED reference is 209/2026, publication 746419-2026. The main CPV classification is 72000000, IT services including consulting, software development, Internet and support. 1

The opportunity is a services procurement concerning a single lot. Tenderers must be capable of delivering the complete scope. Variants are not permitted, and alternative solutions presented as variants may be disregarded.

The call is intended to replace the existing ECCAIRS 2 development and support framework, which is expected to be financially exhausted during the first quarter of 2027 and to end around September or early October 2027. The new framework is intended to protect operational continuity beyond that point.

Key procurement parameters

The principal commercial and procedural terms are as follows. 1

What the procurement is about

ECCAIRS 2 has been operational since 1 January 2021 and supports aviation safety occurrence reporting for European authorities and international partners. It supports implementation of Regulation (EU) No 376/2014 and is aligned with ICAO Annex 13 standards. The system is being internationalised and requires continued technical and operational development.

The expected service scope includes maintenance of the operational platform, infrastructure management, cloud operations, DevSecOps, software development, application support, service management, performance and availability management, security activities, system integration, data-related services, user support, documentation, training and further evolution of the platform.

The detailed technical scope, mandatory requirements, service streams, deliverables and profile requirements are contained in the tender specifications and Annex 9 Technical Specifications. The tenderer should treat those documents, rather than the short portal description, as the definitive statement of work. 2

Framework contract and ordering model

EASA intends to establish up to three separate but identical framework contracts. Contractors will be ranked and placed in a cascade. Specific contracts are expected to be offered according to the ranking and the implementation rules in the draft framework contract.

Signature of a framework contract does not guarantee that EASA will place any specific order. Actual demand will depend on future specific contracts, operational priorities, available budget and the requirements of the ECCAIRS 2 service.

The financial model contains estimated volumes for evaluation purposes only. It does not create a guaranteed workload, minimum purchase volume or entitlement to a specific number of staff days. The framework ceiling of €13 million must not be exceeded.

Within three years after signature, EASA may use a negotiated procedure to procure repeated similar services up to a maximum of 50 percent of the initial framework ceiling. This potential additional procurement is conditional and is not a guaranteed extension or guaranteed revenue for contractors.

Financial model and pricing requirements

Tenderers must submit daily rates in euros for each required profile. The financial offer form applies weighted reference quantities to those daily rates. The resulting weighted total is used to calculate the financial score.

The reference scenario comprises 700 person days across the listed profiles. This scenario represents one reference monthly workload or one month sprint covering the service streams. It is solely for evaluation and ranking and does not represent a committed order.

Only the designated cells in the financial offer workbook may be completed. The formulas must remain unchanged, and additional notes, comments, adjustments or attachments within the restricted financial form are not permitted. The financial offer must be submitted in both XLS and PDF formats. If the two formats are inconsistent, the XLS version prevails. Noncompliance may lead to rejection.

There is no grant funding rate, eligible cost reimbursement mechanism or fixed award amount. The successful contractors are paid under specific contracts for services ordered and accepted by EASA, subject to the framework ceiling and the contractual pricing arrangements.

Who can apply

Any eligible natural or legal person may submit a tender individually or as part of a joint tender. A specific legal form is not required at the time of submission.

Participation is open on equal terms to economic operators established in EU Member States, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland. Operators established in Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo may participate under the relevant Stabilisation and Association Agreements. Operators established in Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine may participate under the applicable Association Agreements.

The World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement does not apply to this procedure. The tender specifications state that the complete services must be provided within the European Union and in compliance with EU law. The same access rules apply to subcontractors and entities whose capacity is relied upon.

Tenderers must not be subject to applicable EU restrictive measures. They must also ensure that relevant group members, subcontractors, relied upon entities, directors, beneficial owners and other involved persons satisfy the applicable exclusion and sanctions requirements.

Tenderers may submit as a sole operator or as a joint tender. In a joint tender, all members have joint and several liability for the performance of the contract, and the group must appoint a group leader with authority to represent the group.

A natural or legal person may not participate simultaneously as a sole tenderer and as a member of another group, or as a member of more than one group. Cross subcontracting arrangements between competing tenders are also restricted and may lead to rejection.

Subcontracting and reliance on other entities

Subcontracting is permitted, subject to the access, exclusion, selection, security and approval requirements in the procurement documents. The main contractor remains fully responsible to EASA for the entire contract.

Identified subcontractors must be listed where required, including the proportion of work to be subcontracted and their expected roles. Subcontractors relied upon to satisfy selection criteria must provide the required commitment letter and evidence.

A tenderer may rely on the capacity of another entity that is not a subcontractor, but must demonstrate that the necessary resources will actually be available. For technical and professional capacity, the supporting entity must perform the services for which its capacity is relied upon.

Changes to identified subcontractors after the submission deadline require prior written approval and must not substantially alter the tender or undermine the selection assessment.

Minimum financial and professional capacity

The tender specifications establish minimum selection requirements. Failure to meet any applicable minimum level can result in rejection before full award evaluation.

The full technical and professional selection criteria, including any additional requirements not reproduced in the supplied extract, must be checked in the final tender specifications before submission. The authority may request documentary evidence within a short deadline, even where the evidence is not required at initial submission.

Exclusion and integrity requirements

Each required involved entity must complete the declaration on honour covering exclusion and selection criteria. The declaration addresses insolvency, unpaid taxes or social security contributions, grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, criminal organisations, money laundering, terrorist financing, trafficking, significant deficiencies in previous EU contracts, irregularities, circumvention of legal obligations and obstruction of audits or investigations.

The declaration also covers directors, persons with powers of representation, control or decision making, beneficial owners and persons assuming unlimited liability where applicable. Tenderers must declare the absence of conflicting professional interests, restrictive measures, established debts to EASA and collusion or lack of independence in preparing the tender.

Supporting evidence may include judicial records, tax and social security certificates, company registration documents, financial documents and evidence of remedial measures. EASA may accept evidence already supplied in an earlier EASA procedure if it remains valid and unchanged, or evidence available from a free national database.

Technical and operational expectations

The opportunity is suited to providers with mature operational governance rather than providers offering only isolated software development. A credible tender should demonstrate the ability to maintain service continuity, manage incidents and service levels, operate cloud environments, control releases, support integrations and respond to security and infrastructure events.

The required profile structure indicates a multidisciplinary delivery model involving leadership, programme management, functional analysis, architecture, cloud and DevSecOps, database engineering, web development, user experience, testing, systems administration, IT service management and training.

The technical response should show how the proposed team will cover all service streams, maintain continuity during transitions, manage knowledge and documentation, handle demand fluctuations and provide suitably experienced personnel for specific contracts.

Security and compliance conditions

Contractors and their personnel must comply with EASA security requirements. The contractor must implement organisational and technical measures for prevention, detection and handling of security incidents and must designate an IT Security Manager.

Security requirements are set out in the draft contract, the MIDAS security requirements appendix and the EASA security baseline appendix. Any costs associated with required security measures, including background checks or security clearances where applicable, are borne by the contractor.

The contractor must also support fraud prevention and detection, impose relevant obligations on subcontractors and personnel, observe environmental considerations across the service lifecycle and maintain an inclusive and non discriminatory working environment.

Submission process and mandatory actions

Tenders must be submitted exclusively through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal electronic submission system. Email, post and other submission methods are not accepted. An EU Login account is required for access and submission.

Each participating organisation must be registered in the European Commission Participant Register and must have a valid nine digit Participant Identification Code. Each member of a joint tender must use its own organisation registration and PIC.

The tender should be prepared using the official documents, including the invitation letter, tender specifications, declaration on honour, financial offer form, technical specifications, subcontractor forms, draft contract and security appendices. The tenderer should also provide all legal, regulatory, financial and technical evidence required by the annex listing documents to be submitted.

The eSubmission system applies technical restrictions on file size, file types, attachment naming and the number of attachments. Tenderers should complete a test or draft submission well before the deadline and obtain the official submission receipt. The receipt timestamp is the evidence of timely submission.

Important dates

Questions must be submitted through the Questions and Answers section of the Funding and Tenders Portal. EASA may publish clarifications or corrections, and tenderers are responsible for monitoring the portal for updates and amended documents until the submission deadline.

Evaluation and award

EASA will assess access to procurement, administrative compliance, exclusion, selection, compliance with mandatory requirements and the award criteria. A tender that fails an earlier stage may not proceed to full evaluation.

The award uses a best price quality ratio with quality and price each weighted at 50 percent. The price score is based on the weighted total generated by the official financial model. The quality assessment will be governed by the detailed tender specifications and should be addressed through a clear, evidence based technical and organisational proposal.

Up to three framework contractors may be selected and ranked in cascade. The contracting authority is not required to award the maximum number of framework contracts if fewer tenders meet the requirements.

Commercial assessment for applicants

The €13 million figure is a ceiling for the framework and not an award amount payable to each contractor. With up to three contractors, the available business may be distributed according to the cascade, specific contract requirements and EASA demand. There is no guaranteed minimum volume.

The 700 person day evaluation scenario should not be used as a revenue forecast. It is a scoring mechanism that compares the proposed daily rates across profiles. Applicants should price sustainably while considering the cost of security compliance, EU based delivery, travel, management overhead, knowledge transfer, continuity and potential demand volatility.

The procurement is likely to favour organisations that can combine strong delivery capability with demonstrable public sector or regulated environment experience. The aviation safety context, criticality of the platform, internationalisation and security requirements make operational resilience and governance central to competitiveness.

Applicant preparation checklist

Applicants should complete the following actions before submission.

Overall assessment

This is a substantial, technically demanding framework procurement for a business critical aviation safety information system. It is not suitable for an early stage company without significant delivery references, financial strength, qualified technical personnel and the ability to provide EU based services.

The strongest applicants are likely to be large IT service providers, specialist cloud and application support companies, aviation technology firms or well structured consortia combining these capabilities. A consortium or specialist subcontracting model may be appropriate where one organisation cannot independently demonstrate the required financial, technical, operational and security capabilities.

The principal commercial risks are the absence of guaranteed orders, cascade ordering, the requirement to cover the entire single lot, the cost of security and compliance, the need to maintain EU based delivery and the possibility that the financial ceiling is consumed unevenly or more slowly than expected. These risks should be reflected in internal bid approval, pricing, staffing and cash flow planning.

The opportunity should be treated as a strategic framework bid rather than a conventional fixed project. The tender response should focus on credible long term service capability, demonstrable operational maturity, rapid mobilisation, measurable service performance, security assurance and the ability to scale across future specific contracts.

Official source documents

The official Funding and Tenders Portal record, tender specifications, technical specifications, invitation letter, financial offer form, declaration on honour, draft contract and security appendices should be treated as controlling sources. The supplied portal record identifies nine procurement documents, all published on 28 October 2026. 1

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Official tender specifications and procurement documents are available through the Documents section of the opportunity record, including the technical specifications, financial offer form, invitation letter, draft contract and security appendices.