Clarification from the agency

About the Position: This is an open continuous announcement. Initial pull will be 26 March 2026. Recruitment will continue through the announcement closing date until the position is filled.

As a AIRPLANE PILOT (TITLE 32), GS-2181-13, you will pilot a unit-equipped (UE) airplane. In addition to piloting responsibilities, performs administrative tasks in support of the Air Operations program.

Major Duties - This is NOT an all-inclusive list:

• Pilot advanced, single or multi-engine military airplane, high performance military fighter aircraft on tactical/non-tactical assigned missions using advanced precision instrument flight techniques in conjunction with air navigational aids.
• Fly well within flight parameters (e.g. speed and loading) to execute normal flights procedures and standard maneuvers in all weather conditions from point-to-point (domestic/foreign) using fully adequate landing areas.
• Prepare for flight to include: securing current and forecast weather information to determine conditions along the proposed route of flight and at the destination; plans the flight through the study of maps and charts to determine routing, intermediate stops, alternate destination, fuel requirements, estimated flying time and, if required, files the airplane flight plan; checks or verifies that the airplane is ready for flight, including such aspects as loading and weight distribution, maintenance or service conditions, and performing prescribed preflight checks; ensures that any passengers and crew members are briefed on the nature and purpose of the flight and the procedures to be followed in an emergency; and obtains the proper clearances to begin the flight.
• Operate the airplane with the utmost safety to include adhering to flight procedures and parameters specified in the airplane flight manual; communicating and coordinating with ground units and controlling activities; monitoring performance of the airplane and progress of the flight; and takes corrective action, including the use of emergency procedures as required.
• Accomplish post-flight activities to include maintaining airplane logs and forms; writing flight reports; coordinating with maintenance personnel on service conditions; and conducting post-flight checks.
• Serve as the Air Commander's representative when performing duties as Supervisor of Flying (SOF) and is responsible for the safe and efficient mission accomplishment of the unit.
• Design and coordinate comprehensive training plans and scenarios to provide realistic technical aircrew training.
• Develop unit deliberate planning for implementation of wartime, base and national tasking.
• Plan, organize and administer unit flying, explosive, and ground safety programs in accordance with Air Force, ANG and OSHA directives, and applicable technical publications.

Conditions of employment

• This is an excepted service position that requires membership in the Illinois National Guard and in the military grade listed in the announcement. This is required prior to the effective date of placement. If you are not sure you are eligible for military membership, please contact a National Guard recruiter prior to applying for this position.
• Selectee will be required to wear a military uniform.
• Acceptance of an excepted service position constitutes concurrence with these requirements as a condition of employment.
• Males born after 31 December 1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Federal employment suitability as determined by a background investigation.
• May be required to successfully complete a trial period.
• This position is covered by the Domestic Violence Misdemeanor Amendment (30 Sep 96) of the Gun Control Act (Lautenberg Amendment) of 1968. An individual convicted of a qualifying crime of domestic violence may not perform the duties of this position.
• IAW The Fair Chance Act, Agency employees may not request criminal history information at the point of initial application, upon receipt of an application, or prior to, during or after a job interview. If an Optional Form (OF) 306, Declaration of Employment is submitted prior to the point of a conditional offer, questions related to background information section may not be asked.
• Irregular and/or overtime (compensatory) hours may be required to support operational requirements or contingencies or may be required to work hours outside of the normal duty day.
• Drug testing may be required.
• Must have or be able to obtain a Top Secret clearance.
• May be required to travel by military or commercial air to conferences, meetings, or other functions away from the normal duty station.
• Work may require access to classified information. Must be able to obtain and maintain the appropriate security clearance.
• The employee may be required to work other than normal duty hours, which may include evenings, weekends, and/or holidays.
• Qualifications for this position require the pilot to have graduated from USAF or USN Undergraduate Flying Training (UFT).
• Pilots are required to maintain the same medical standards as USAF military pilots.
• Participation in direct deposit is mandatory.
• Recruitment and relocation incentives may be available for this position.
• PCS expenses may be authorized.

Qualifications

AREA OF CONSIDERATION: The areas of considerations for this position, Title 32 Excepted Service (32 U.S. Code § 709), will be in the following manner and sequence,

• The FIRST area of consideration for this position will be all excepted permanent and indefinite temporary technicians within the ILNG.
• The SECOND area of consideration will be all current Federal Employees.
• The THIRD area of consideration will be all Federal re-employment eligible.
• The FOURTH area of consideration will be applicants willing to become T32 Dual Status Technicians and gain ILNG membership.
• The FIFTH area of consideration will U.S. Citizens.

Military Grades: Officers only - NTE the rank of O4

EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: An undergraduate degree from an accredited college/university is MANDATORY. A Graduate Degree from an accredited civilian academic college or from an equivalent professional military education school is optimum.

CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: You MUST possess a Federal Aviation Administration certifications awarded from accredited civilian aviation programs OR must have aviation certifications from accredited military aviation schools. A copy must be provided with application to be considered.

GENERAL EXPERIENCE: MUST possess a competent understanding of the occupation's basic principles and concepts and possess a minimum of one-year on-the-job experience in the grade (or a comparable military rank) immediately below the next higher level of GS-12.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12 Level. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: GS-13 Level MUST possess at least two-years working experiences in civilian aviation programs; or, military service aviation programs (active duty or reserve components); or, in the Army National Guard Aviation Support facility; or, Air National Guard Wing/ Operations Group; experienced in piloting and instructing pilot skills in one or more of the following main- frame/military aircraft: Fixed-wing, rotary, or remotely piloted aircraft (RPA); ability to train and instruct others in the piloting of a specified main-frame military aircraft; experienced in reading and applying mission tasks, intelligence reports, and weather information; experienced in supervising and/or conducting mission planning, mission preparations, filing of flight plans, and conducting crew briefings; experienced in aircraft preflight inspections, aircraft loading, equipment assessments, and mission manning; experienced in operating aircraft controls and equipment; experienced in performing or supervising the work procedures involved in navigation, in-flight refueling, search and rescue operations, surveillance, or reconnaissance; experienced in conducting or supervising crew member training on simple to complex mission specific tasks; experienced in developing plans and policies, monitoring operations, and advising commanders; experienced in flight theory, air navigation, meteorology, flying directives, aircraft operating procedures, and mission tactics; experienced in planning and preparing for missions; and, must have at least two years experiences in piloting or instructing others in piloting specific air-frame/military aircraft; experienced in various piloting administrative tasks performed in support of Air National Guard aviation programs; experienced in aviation unit quality control management programs; experienced in the unit flying, explosive, and ground safety programs in accordance with Department of the Air Force, National Guard Bureau, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration directives; experienced in applying directives, regulations, accident reports, safety data, and local operating conditions to determine unit safety program requirements; experienced in flying operations and coordinating with appropriate agencies to ensure compliance with all applicable safety regulations and programs; experienced in one or more missions such as, air-to-air; air-to-ground; mortar-to-arm escort; surveillance; reconnaissance; surface attack; killer-scout; target illumination; or laser targeting; experienced in traditional "stick and rudder" type controls for piloting aircraft direction, altitude, and speed; experienced in using aircraft instrumentation and aircraft mounted video cameras; experienced in visual flight- rule type flying and aircraft instrument flying; experienced in flying simulated "real world" combat and non-combat missions and terrain; experienced in planning, scheduling, and conducting training flights through Federal Aviation Administration controlled national airspace; experienced in applying operational directives, training directives, instructions, standard operating procedures, and special instructions of National Guard Bureau, United States Army or United States Air Force, and gaining commands; experienced in working independently to plan and perform work assignments; experienced in completing safe and efficient mission accomplishments through the use of Operational Risk Management; experienced performing aviation duties such as, cancelling flying activities, diverting aircraft, dictating mission requirements, approving specific activities, coordinating for airport or airspace utilization with FAA, or directing emergency actions that involved unit support agencies; experienced in using applicable Army aviation regulations, policies, requirements and standards, skills and practices; and, the application of instructional techniques to the training of other pilots in the Army National Guard flying facilities; experienced in conducting particular missions and flying specific main- frame aircraft in combat tactics, flying in mountainous terrain, performing tactical remote site evaluations, performing landings on remote sites, providing ground and flight training, and conducting night-vision operations or instructions; experienced in standardization and evaluation programs, written ground examinations, emergency procedures, and aircrew performance standards in accordance with applicable directives and Federal Aviation Administration certification requirements; experienced in reviewing and complying with applicable service flight publications and directives for accuracy and currency; experienced on weaponry and combat or non-combat tactics for applicable military aircraft; experienced with wartime and peacetime contingency plans and supplements used for unit mobilizations, deployments, strange field operations, or troop missions and redeployments.

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.

Verbiage displayed on your resume or application must contain your own words. You may refer to position descriptions, i.e. the general and specialized experience located within the vacancy announcement, to assist with describing work experience; however, resumes or applications received in verbatim will not be considered. In your resume you will need to address the general and specialized experience listed below. Please use as much detail as needed, giving dates (months and years) of the experience, position title and how the experience was gained. This information is needed to determine if you are qualified for the position.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the announcement has closed, your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine if you meet the qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application package, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this position. If you are found to be among the top qualified candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

• Judgement and Decision Making
• Operation and Control
• Safety and Security

To apply for this position, you must submit a complete Application Package which includes:

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS: Your resume that clearly demonstrates experience that meets the requirements of this position. Your resume must contain identifiable information such as your name, address, and phone number. It should also show your work schedule, hours worked per week, dates (including Month and Year, e.g., 02/2017, Feb 2017, etc.) of employment and duties performed. Resume must not exceed 2 pages.

• SF-50 - Must include if you are a current or previous federal employee.
• OFFICIAL Transcript from an accredited college/university
• Federal Aviation Administration Certificate

Other supporting documents (as applicable):

• Certifications
• DD-214
• SF-50 - Please include if you are a current or previous federal employee.
• NGIL Form 73

https://www.il.ngb.army.mil/Portals/30/Documents/Jobs/NGILForm73.pdf?ver=2019-05-01-161908-260

*NGIL Form 73 - Illinois National Guard Technician Program Supplement to Application for Dual Status (DS), to reflect military qualifications.

Complete and accurate data is essential to ensure fair evaluation, applicants with no military qualifications must submit form stating, "not applicable" and signature on page 2 of the NGIL Form 73.

Documents NOT accepted: photographs, copies of position descriptions, training certificates, performance ratings, awards, and letters of appreciation.

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