Aviation Operations Specialist (UAS)

Duties Duties listed are at full performance grade GS-09 level.
Provides information and technical direction for all planned and continuing Forest aviation operations.
Maintains close liaison with the Regional Fire UAS Specialist and the Regional Resource Management UAS Specialist.
Develops Project Aviation Safety Plans (PASP/MASP) to support National, Regional, and local UAS projects and missions according to agency policy.
Maintains close liaison with other aviation managers, Forest Fire Management Officer(s), Deputy Forest FMO(s), Interagency Dispatch Center Manager(s), and Dispatch Coordinators to exchange information on current aviation operations.
Develops and evaluates sensors and data collection and processing of equipment and techniques for UAS activity.
Provides input to the regional and forest Aviation Operations and Safety Plan.
Assists with the preparation of the Forest level supplements to FSM 5700, the Regional Aviation Management Plan, and the Regional Aviation Mishap Prevention Plan.
Coordinates with the Forest Aviation Officer and Regional aviation management on Forest aviation operations, technical guidance, special projects for aviation support personnel, and other aviation related aspects.
Requirements Conditions of Employment Must be a U.
S.
Citizen or National.
Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check.
To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify.
Must be 18 years of age.
This is a drug testing designated position.
You will be subject to pre-employment and random drug testing.
Appointment is based on a negative result.
This announcement constitutes 30 days advance notice.
Subject to one year supervisory/managerial probationary period unless prior service is creditable.
New USDA supervisors must successfully complete all components of the required training program before the end of their probationary period.
Minimum of 90 days of wildland firefighting experience is required.
Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable).
Some Fire positions may have Conditions of Employment such as: a valid state driver's license; a commercial driver's license (CDL); pre-appointment and random drug testing; or a physical or medical examination.
There may be additional Conditions of Employment not listed here, however applicants will be notified of any specific requirements at the time a tentative job offer is made.
Qualifications In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement.
For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.
Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements.
Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education.
Provide course descriptions as necessary.
Specialized Experience Requirement: For the GS-09: You must have one-year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 in the Federal service OR a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.
B.
or J.
D.
, if related; OR an appropriate combination of specialized experience and education (only graduate education in excess of 18 semester hours may be used to qualify applicants for this grade level).
Examples of specialized experience include: Administrative processing of flight clearances; limited advice to pilots on geographic locations of assignments and related weather conditions; and support duties such as posting and announcing plane arrivals and departures, tracking automated flight following system, maintaining passenger and cargo manifest records, and maintaining flight requests.
Applies technical knowledge to mobilize numerous personnel with supporting supplies, equipment, aircraft, and services on short notice in order to effectively and efficiently suppress wildfires.
Selective Placement Factors: A minimum 90-day experience performing on-the-line (Primary/Rigorous) wildland fire suppression duties as a member of an organized fire suppression crew or comparable unit that utilized knowledge of wildland fire suppression, containment or control techniques and practices under various conditions.
This experience must be documented with specific dates in the online application or resume.
Interagency Fire Program Management (IFPM) and Forest Service - Fire Program Management (FS-FPM) qualifications must be met by the time of selection.
Most recent IQCS master record and/or signed Agency Certified task book must be attached to your application.
If you are selected, you may be required to submit an updated IQCS master record or signed Agency Certified task book as proof of attainment of IFPM requirements prior to a final verbal offer.
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.
FIREFIGHTER RETIREMENT COVERAGE: This is a secondary position covered under the special retirement provisions of 5 USC 8336(c) for the Civil Service Retirement System and of 5 USC 8412(d) for the Federal Employees Retirement System.
To receive consideration for this position, you must provide updated required documents and meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education See QUALIFICATIONS section for education requirements.
Additional information For additional information about the duties and location(s) of these positions, please contact regional representative: To see the different locations within the Regional Offices | US Forest Service (usda.
gov) Region 1: Northern Region - Tiffany Counts at tiffany.
countsusda.
gov Region 2: Rocky Mountain Region - Scott McDermid at scott.
mcdermid@usda.
gov Region 3: Southwestern Region - Tobe Haught at tobe.
haught@usda.
gov Region 4: Intermountain Region - Celeste Hancock at celeste.
hancock@usda.
gov Region 5: Pacific Southwest Region - Deirdre Cherry at deirdre.
cherry@usda.
gov Region 6: Pacific Northwest Region - Jason Heinz at Jason.
heinz@usda.
gov Region 8: Southern Region - Russ Marchion at russell.
marchion@usda.
gov Region 9: Eastern Region - Brian Hicks at brian.
a.
hicks@usda.
gov Job Corps Center: All Region- Dirk Huber at dirk.
huber@usda.
gov Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors.
These are permanent positions with varying tours of duty and may include weekend work.
Some positions may have irregular and protracted hours of work.
Tours of duty include full-time or less than full time (guaranteed minimum 13 pay periods full-time employment).
Availability of government housing, federal day care facilities, and telework may be available.
The duty station for this position will be at one of the duty locations listed in this announcement.
Salary range as shown is the locality pay Rest of U.
S.
(RUS).
Pay rates vary by location.
Please visit the Office of Personnel Management's website for additional information on pay rates.
Recruitment or Relocation Incentive may be authorized.
Final determination to pay an incentive will be made by the hiring official at time of job offer.
The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates.
Additional information is available at https://www.
opm.
gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-and-leave-flexibilities-for-recruitment-and-retention/ Selectee will be responsible for tax obligations related to payments for moving expenses - 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act, Public Law 115-97.
Questions should be directed to the Travel Help Desk, 877-372-7248, Option 1, or email SM.
FS.
asc_tos@usda.
gov Positions filled from this announcement may be a bargaining or a non-bargaining unit position represented by either NFFE, AFGE or NAGE.
Benefits A career with the U.
S.
government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.
Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How You Will Be Evaluated You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
This is a Direct-Hire Authority position, all applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, to include any selective placement factor(s), if applicable, will be referred to the selecting official.
Before a certificate is issued to the selecting official, the resume is reviewed to ensure that you meet all the qualification requirements.
A rating will not be used; veteran's preference does not apply due to the existence of the Direct Hire authority for this position.
Selections made under this authority will be processed as new appointments to the civil service.
Current civil service employees would be given a new appointment.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, you may be found ineligible.
Please follow all instructions carefully.
Errors or omissions may affect your rating.
Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.
To view the application form, visit: https://apply.
usastaffing.
gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12300918 Benefits A career with the U.
S.
government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.
Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
Required Documents As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits.
Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee.
You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete.
Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc.
Encrypted documents will not be accepted.
Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the responsibilities section including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) supervisor's phone number and whether or not the supervisor may be contacted for a reference check; 5) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts.
An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty.
Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education as equivalent to U.
S.
education standards.
There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service.
All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.
Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply Please view Tips for Applicants - a guide to the Forest Service application process.
Read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin.
You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.
m.
Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged.
We are available to assist you during business hours (8:00a.
m.
- 4:00p.
m.
Mountain Time Zone, Monday - Friday.
If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method.
All hardship application packages must be returned to Human Resources no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order for it to be entered into the system prior to the closing date.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis.
Contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, in USAJOBS click "Apply" and follow the instructions to attach your resume and supporting documents, complete the assessment questionnaire, and submit your application.
NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred.
However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents.
Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX).
Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.
Agency contact information HRM Contact Center Phone 1-877-372-7248 X2 Email HRM_Contact_Center@usda.
gov Address USDA Forest Service HRM Contact Center DO NOT MAIL IN APPLICATIONS, SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN THE ANNOUNCEMENT Albuquerque, NM 87109 US Next steps Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official.
If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.
Log in to your USAJOBS to check your application status.
We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.
Fair and Transparent The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent.
Please read the following guidance.
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy Reasonable accommodation policy Financial suitability Selective Service New employee probationary period Signature and false statements Privacy Act Social security number request Required Documents The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete.
Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc.
Encrypted documents will not be accepted.
Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the responsibilities section including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) supervisor's phone number and whether or not the supervisor may be contacted for a reference check; 5) other qualifications.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts.
An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty.
Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university.
If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education as equivalent to U.
S.
education standards.
There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service.
All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.
Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.
S.
Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
Help This job is open to Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL) Federal employees who meet the definition of a "surplus" or "displaced" employee.
The public U.
S.
Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.
S.
Clarification from the agency Applications will be accepted from any U.
S.
citizen.
Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position.
Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.