Wildland Firefighter (Assistant Airtanker Base Manager)

Office of the Secretary of the Interior•Roswell, NM

4d•Onsite

About The Position

This is a Direct-Hire Wildland Firefighter position with the US Wildland Fire Service, in the GW-0456 series, at grades GW-06/07/08. The position is located in Roswell, New Mexico, and is an assistant airtanker base management role supporting aviation firefighting operations. It is a career-ladder opportunity with a full performance level of GW-08; promotion from a lower grade is discretionary and depends on eligibility, performance, and availability of higher-level work. The incumbent serves as a crewmember at an airtanker base and helps ensure safe, efficient, and cost-effective operations. The work includes supporting aircraft and ground activities, monitoring compliance with policies and procedures, briefing aviation resources, administering aircraft contracts, and leading aviation firefighting personnel. In the absence of the air base manager, the incumbent may serve as a contact for airport management, contractors, public affairs, and government entities. The position requires documented prior primary wildland firefighting experience and, for the GW-08 level only, an applicable NWCG qualification. Work may involve on-call duties, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime, shift work, and frequent extended travel, particularly during fire season. Telework is suitable only in an emergency or natural disaster.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
Must meet suitability requirements for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
Must submit to a drug test and receive a negative result before appointment; the position is also subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
Must operate a government or private motor vehicle as part of official duties and maintain a valid state driver's license throughout employment.
Must serve a one-year probationary period.
Males born after December 31, 1959, must be registered for Selective Service.
Must have prior primary/rigorous wildland firefighting experience gained through fire-line work in containment, control, suppression, or use of wildland fire. Experience must be documented in the resume with dates and hours worked per week. Eligibility requires either at least one full fire season in a primary wildland firefighting role or at least 14 cumulative or consecutive days of on-the-ground fire-line experience.
For GW-06: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW-05 level in federal service, including experience in at least one of the following: assisting with facility maintenance, oversight, or repair/improvement procedures; assisting higher-level personnel with contract preparation or administration; or using specialized airtanker equipment and ensuring it is in proper working order.
For GW-07: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW-06 level in federal service, including experience in at least one of the following: assisting with safe loading of fire-retardant materials into air tankers; providing facility maintenance, oversight, or procurement for repairs and improvements; or assisting with administration of aircraft and retardant contracts.
For GW-08: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW-07 level in federal service, including experience in at least one of the following: assisting with planning, scheduling, and monitoring flights from a base for resource and fire-related projects; assisting with preparation and direction of airtanker base operational plans; or assisting with administration of aircraft or fire-retardant contracts.
For GW-08 only, must have an NWCG qualification in either Aircraft Timekeeper (ATIM) or Fixed Wing Parking Tender (FWPT); currency is not required.
Must meet all qualification and selective placement factor requirements by the announcement closing date.
For secondary firefighter retirement coverage, must provide a written description demonstrating direct wildland firefighting experience and knowledge of wildland firefighting principles, methods, and techniques. Education alone does not satisfy this requirement.
For qualifying prescribed-fire experience, experience must include fire-line work and be supplemented by fire-suppression experience.
May be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime, and shift work.
Subject to frequent extended travel, up to 75% of the time, particularly during fire season; must obtain a government charge card for travel and may be required to obtain or maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
Must provide qualifying experience details in the resume, including full-time or part-time status and hours worked per week; military service dates on a DD-214 or Statement of Service satisfy the hours documentation requirement.
There is no education-based qualification option for the 0456 series at the advertised grade levels.

Responsibilities

Serve as a crewmember at an airtanker base.
Ensure ramp operations, including aircraft parking, loading, and movement, are conducted safely.
Ensure safe aviation and ground support activities, including radio and hand-signal communication, aircraft movement, fueling, retardant mixing and loading, and vehicle movement on the ramp.
Work with wildland support aircraft on activities such as aircraft start-up, loading, taxiing, and parking.
Compile data for daily summaries and yearly reports.
Monitor and assess aviation operations and base activities for compliance with established policies, guidelines, and regulations, supporting safe, efficient, and cost-effective operations.
Participate in daily informational briefings for aviation resources assigned to the base and provide daily risk assessments for planned and anticipated operations.
Perform day-to-day administration of aircraft contracts and sign for receipt of services.
Contribute to the direction and oversight of airtanker and SEAT base operations.
Direct aviation firefighting personnel supporting suppression actions or serve as a situational leader directing a small crew of aviation firefighters or vendors on an airbase.
In the absence of the air base manager, serve as a point of contact with airport management, contractor representatives, public affairs, and federal, state, and local entities regarding aviation operations at the base.
Oversee the mixing and loading of fire chemicals to ensure aircraft weight limits are not exceeded and effective product is delivered.
Coordinate with other air bases to identify needs and administer contract requirements.