Aviation Safety and Compliance Inspector (Rotary Wing Operations)

Summary

This position is an Aviation Safety and Compliance Inspector (Rotary Wing Operations), GS-1801-12/13 working for the U.S. Wildland Fire Service. This position is also open to the public under announcement WFSDE-26-13049420-AME-H. You must apply to each announcement separately if you wish to be considered under both recruitment methods.

Duties

• At the full performance level (GS-13), as an Aviation Safety and Compliance Inspector (Rotary Wing Operations), your duties will include but are not limited to the following: Evaluates the capabilities of private contractors to perform point-to-point, investigation, special use and precision reconnaissance flights and issues initial qualification cards for mission specific applications, of which, requires advanced pilot skills and maneuvers. Provides technical aviation assistance to the Department of Interior's Bureaus and Offices for evolving or changing programs that require aircraft support. Maintains a program of recurring visits involving personal contacts with Bureau personnel supervising operations and aviation operators providing contractual services. Evaluates qualifications of employees responsible for management and technical supervision of aircraft operations, capability of management's control of aircraft operations, government and operator working relationships, and level of user-Bureau satisfaction with services provided by WFS. Leads or conducts surveillance and inspection of DOI's fleet aircraft and contractor maintenance facilities, to ensure compliance with department regulations, contract specifications, and quality control plans. Serves as the Team Member for the aircraft rental agreement renewal process for all contractor and cooperating Federal, State, and local agency aviation operations for an assigned geographical area. Serves as the point of contact for arranging the inspection and coordinating with WFS authorized inspectors and the Forest Service. The employee will serve as Pilot in Command (PIC) on DOI rotor-wing aircraft, perform flight evaluations and surveillance of contracted rotor-wing pilots, and flight evaluations and training of DOI fleet pilots. Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Qualifications

Merit Promotion candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements by 09/23/2026. Applicants must meet both eligibility and qualification requirements for the position of interest by the closing date of the Job Announcement. Specifically, i. Area of Consideration. ii. Time-in-grade (TIG) requirements as specified in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. iii. Time after competitive appointment as specified in 5 CFR 330.502.iv. Qualification requirements outlined in OPM's Qualifications Standards for General Schedule Positions. All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement- 09/23/2026 -unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected. In order to qualify for this position, you must possess the Minimum Qualification requirements listed below. Selective Placement Factors: This position requires special qualifications that have been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified. Applicants must meet ALL of the following to qualify: Commercial Pilot Certificate with appropriate rotorcraft-helicopter ratings and instrument ratings Flight Instructor Certificate with rotorcraft-helicopter rating Valid first or second-class medical certificate -AND- For GS-12 EXPERIENCE: To qualify for the GS-12, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level in the Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to work of the position to be filled. Must meet all specialized experience defined as: 1) Operational experience flying rotor-wing aircraft in natural resource missions; AND 2) Administering flight checks in for rotor-wing aircrafts. -OR- For GS-13 EXPERIENCE: To qualify for the GS-13, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to work of the position to be filled. Must meet all specialized experience defined as: 1) Operational experience flying rotor-wing aircraft in natural resource missions; 2) Administering flight checks in rotor-wing aircraft; AND 3) Conducting rotor-wing pilot proficiency evaluations. Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. ICTAP/CTAP Statement: Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level on all competencies. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit proof that they meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(2) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating, and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible. If you are selected for Federal employment, you will be required to fill out a Declaration of Federal Employment, OF-306, prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. Failing to answer all questions truthfully and completely or providing false statements on your application may be grounds for not hiring you, or for firing you after you begin work. Also, you may be punished by fine or imprisonment (U.S. Code, Title 18, section 1001). Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. If you are currently on an RPL, you may be given priority consideration.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National. Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation. Direct Deposit Required. You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use. Valid first or second-class medical certificate, required. Selectees may be subject to post-employment medical examinations to determine if they are maintaining the fitness standards for this position. This position requires the incumbent to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of their official duties. Selectee must hold and maintain a valid state driver's license throughout their employment in this position. A condition of employment for accepting this position, you MAY be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated. Notice of Financial Disclosure Report Requirement: This position is subject to a financial disclosure requirement, and you will be required to complete either OGE Form 278e or OGE Form 450 as applicable within 30 days of your appointment. Individuals assigned male at birth after 12-31-59 must be registered for the Selective Service. To verify registration, visit www.SSS.gov. Selectees will be expected to travel in small single-engine and multi-engine aircraft. You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work. You may be required to travel overnight away from home multiple times per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes. You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority. You must be 18 years of age or older to be assigned to a hazardous position.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement.

How to apply

**Required Documents Continued: CTAP/ICTAP: Documentation for Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan consideration if you are a displaced Federal employee within the local commuting area. You must include: 1) Proof you are a displaced Federal employee, e.g., RIF Separation Notice, Notice of Proposed Removal, etc; 2) SF-50s (Notifications of Personnel Action) showing career/conditional tenure competitive status, promotion potential and duty location; and 3) your most recent performance appraisal. To exercise selection priority, displaced or surplus Federal employees must be rated well-qualified or above 85 on the rating criteria for this position. Former Public Land Corps Member: Submit your Certificate of Eligibility for Non-Competitive Hiring Based for Public Land Corps Service along with a copy of your "PLC Participant Verification Work Hours Sheet." Applicants applying under PL-114-47, Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act must submit documentation verifying eligibility. Required documentation includes: First and last SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) for each appointment verifying the Position Occupied code (block 34, code 1-Competitive Service), AND Documentation of satisfactory performance for each appointment, such as, performance evaluations, memorandum of record, whereas the supervisor(s) documented an acceptable performance level for a specified rating/employment period. Failure to submit required documentation may result in loss of consideration. If you are applying for this position based on eligibility under other noncompetitive special appointing authorities, you MUST submit proof of this eligibility. Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices. ** End of Required Documents below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 09/23/2026. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation.WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account. Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application." Click here for USAJobs Help with "How to create an application" To PREVIEW the application questionnaire, select the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13049418 Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS. Select documents you want included in this application. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed. Select if you want to include your demographic information. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site." Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown. Upload any missing required documents or optional documents. Review and Submit Application. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement. To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job. Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. So it is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.