Regional Aviation Manager (RAM) - Direct Hire Authority Job

Vacancy No. 25-SERFIRE-12573562-DHA Department National Park Service
Salary $86,962.00 to $134,435.00 Grade 12 to 13
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 10/17/2024 Close Date 10/31/2024
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Atlanta, GAManteo, NC


Summary

Incumbent provides direct support and expertise to all units within the three eastern NPS regions carrying out aviation program responsibilities; confirming compliance with existing statutes, regulations, and policies; developing procedures; providing guidance to aviation users in aviation management and safety policies; developing aviation safety and aircraft mishap prevention programs.

In order to be considered for any, or all locations, please ensure desired locations are selected.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. Citizen. DIRECT HIRING AUTHORITY will be used to fill this position.

Duties

  • Programmatic duties include safety, policy development and compliance, budget management, training, planning, evaluation, and all other aviation related services performed or provided by the Region.
  • Serves as the Regional Aviation Manager (RAM) for the Legacy Northeast Region, National Capital Region, and Southeast Region. As the Regional Aviation Manager (RAM) for NER/NCR/SER, this position is organized under the Branch of Wildland Fire and Aviation/Division of Visitor and Resource Protection.
  • Serve as technical advisor on aviation operations and the regional aviation training program.
  • Assures safe and cost-effective use of aviation resources.
  • Confirms compliance with existing statues, regulations, and policies.
  • Develops NPS procedures and provides guidance to aviation users in implementing Departmental aviation management and safety policies.
  • Supports complex program areas such as administrative, use, search and rescue, law enforcement and resource aviation requirements.
  • Reviews current aviation management plans and procedures and provides technical and management direction on aircraft operations to ensure adherence to agency policies.
  • Maintains a cooperative relationship with military and civilian aviation operations, including air ambulance services and air search and rescue squadrons of military air installations within the eastern U.S.
  • Duties listed are at the full performance level of the position (GS-13).

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
  • Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
  • Must be 18 years of age at time of close date of announcement.
  • Must pass the Work Capacity Test for certain Interagency Fire Program Management or Fire Program Management positions.
  • This is a Drug Test Designated Position. 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.
  • Prior primary/rigorous wildland firefighting experience is required.
  • Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable).
  • You will be required to operate a government motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service fire uniform standards.
  • You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
  • If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
  • Incumbent will be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  • Prior to appointment, you must be determined physically fit by an authorized government physician to perform strenuous and physically demanding duties; and pass a medical examination given by an authorized government physician.
  • You will also be required to complete periodic medical examinations throughout employment.
  • Subject to frequent extended travel up to 14 nights a month particularly during fire season, and you must obtain a government charge card for travel.

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 Transportation Specialist Series 2101 (opm.gov).

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year - month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount qualified specialized experience. If an applicant's resume is incomplete or does not support the requirements for minimum qualifications or specialized experience a rating of "ineligible" or "not qualified" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted.

Individual Occupational Requirements:

  • Candidates must possess Primary/Rigorous wildland firefighting experience, gained through fire line work in containment, control, suppression or use of wildland fire. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered.
AND
  • Undergraduate and Graduate Education:Major study -- accounting, business administration, business or commercial law, commerce, economics, engineering, finance, industrial management, statistics, traffic management, transportation, motor mechanics, or other fields related to the position. (Transcripts must be provided)
OR
  • Experience that demonstrated a knowledge of the transportation function(s) of the position.

In addition to the requirements described above, the following additional experience are required for the grade specified.

For the GS-12 level:
One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level, or higher in the Federal service, or equivalent; Examples of specialized experience include: Applied interagency aviation policy, guidelines, and procedures as they apply to fixed and rotor wing aircraft operations in support of wildland fire, resource management, law enforcement, and search and rescue operations; Provided aviation safety technology advice, operational guidance, risk assessment, and specific aviation management experience in program implementation with emphasis on policy development, interpretation, and procedural compliance; Ensured aviation facilities and operations programs are maintained and managed within the scope of agency standards; Managed complex aviation issues in the all-hazard operations related to wilderness program implementation and overflight restrictions; Provided aviation safety leadership in the aviation safety program.

For the GS-13 level:
One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level, or higher in the Federal service, or equivalent; Examples of specialized experience include: Provided expert technical guidance to aviation users for adherence to policies and procedures; Developed and directed implementation of an aviation safety and training program; Reviewed aviation management plans and procedures for technical and management soundness; Participated in aviation technical evaluation committees, aviation mishap review boards, serious accident investigation teams and board of inquiry investigations; Monitored wildland fire aviation operations to analyze aircraft/pilot performance to evaluate safe and efficient use of aviation assets.

Secondary Firefighter Retirement Coverage - Applicants for this secondary administrative fire fighter position under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d), must possess knowledge of the principles, methods, and techniques of wildland firefighting as demonstrated by direct wildland firefighting experience. In order to receive credit, you must provide a written description of your experience in wildland firefighting. Education without hands-on wildland firefighting experience does not meet this requirement. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fireline experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting 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.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement. The education listed under "Qualifications" above may be utilized in ADDITION to required specialized experience.

Additional information

This notice is being issued to recruit personnel to occupations for which a critical hiring need has been identified. To assist in filling these positions, OPM has granted the Department of the Interior "Direct Hire Authority".

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

Promotion to the full performance level is neither guaranteed nor implied and will be based solely on your ability to satisfactorily perform the work of the position, existing work at the higher grade level, and recommendation by the position's supervisor.

A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR §575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive.

A Relocation Incentive May Be Authorized for a Federal employee when the employee must move, as directed by the National Park Service (NPS) either through a management directed reassignment or selection for employment, to a different location at least 50 miles away from the one where his/her position of record held at time of selection is currently located, due to a need of the NPS. A relocation incentive is not the same as a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and, as such, may be granted in conjunction with one another.

Physical Demands: The majority of work is sedentary in nature. The job does require intermittent physical exertion while inspecting field operations or participating in accident/incident investigations. On occasion, the incumbent may be required to perform field work requiring long walks over rough rocky terrain for long hours during high temperatures. Some travel to meeting locations in other cities and remote field locations for assignment for up to two weeks in duration is required. Mode of travel may be by aircraft, ground vehicle, and on foot.

Working Conditions: Much of the work is performed in an office or meeting room setting. The incumbent will be assessing direct applications of aviation need and activities in the field program. These activities often require the person to be at the location engaged in actual aviation activities in the air and on the ground. The work can be expected to include periodic assignments of long duration at remote airports, heliports, and field camps. At times, the incumbent will be required to inspect aviation management activities on wildfires, prescribed fires, and other resource management activities from the air as an observer or in some other capacity as a member of the Incident Command Team (ICT). At times, ground travel around fires, search and rescue locations or other incident sites may be required, and travel around these areas involves risk. Incumbent may be required, as a member of a Board of Inquiry/Review or aircraft accident investigation team, to investigate aviation related injuries and/or fatalities.

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.

Review our 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.

Applicants will be evaluated based on how whether they meet the qualification requirements.

Upon receipt of the completed application package, a review of your application will be made to ensure basic qualification requirements are met.

This vacancy will be filled through a Direct Hire Authority. Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to positions filled under this Authority. All qualified applicants, as determined by the SHRO, will be referred for consideration. While managers and supervisors are not required to conduct interviews, it is highly recommended that they do so in order to assess the competencies of each applicant.

If an applicant's resume is incomplete or does not support the requirements for minimum qualifications or specialized experience a rating of "ineligible" or "not qualified" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted.

If a determination is made that an applicant has inflated qualifications or experience on the resume, the applicant will receive no consideration for the position, as per OPM regulations.

Required Documents

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 10/31/2024:

  1. Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, dates specified in month and year format, and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount qualified specialized experience. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.
  2. Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) OR Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) - If you are applying under CTAP and ICTAP, you MUST submit proof of eligibility under 5 CFR 330.602(a) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of your most recent performance rating, and a copy of your most recent SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) showing your position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP or ICTAP eligible.
  3. Documentation that you meet the Selective Factors.
  4. College transcripts are required if qualifying on education.

Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc.

Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices.

How to Apply

To apply for this position: You must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 10/31/2024. 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.

  1. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account.
  2. Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application."
  3. Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS.
  4. Select documents you want included in this application.
  5. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed.
  6. Select if you want to include your demographic information.
  7. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site."
  8. Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application.
  9. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown.
    • Upload any missing required documents or optional documents.
  10. Review and Submit Application.
  11. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position.
  12. 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. It is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.
  13. We do not accept hard copy or emailed application packages.

Agency contact information

Lisa Salazar
Address
South East Fire and Aviation-SPARK
100 Alabama Street
Building 1924
Atlanta, GA 30303
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

Once the Occupational Questionnaire is received you will receive acknowledgement that your submission was successful. If you are among the qualified candidates, your name will be referred to the hiring official, and you may be contacted directly for a possible interview. You will be notified of the status of your Application Package at the time candidates are referred for consideration, and when the selection process is complete.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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