[Protest of DLA Contract Award for Helicopter Parts]

A firm protested a Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) contract award for helicopter parts, contending that DLA denied it an opportunity to compete by failing to timely process its source-approval request. GAO held that: (1) DLA unreasonably denied the protester an opportunity to compete, since it failed to timely act on the protester's source-approval request; and (2) the protester was entitled to reimbursement for its bid and protest preparation costs. Accordingly, the protest was sustained.