Aviation Safety Technician

Summary Incumbent serves as an Aviation Safety Technician (AST) with the North Texas Flight Standards District Office providing technical support to Aviation Safety Inspectors (ASIs) and the public. Performs or assists with a wide range of certification, surveillance, and investigation duties requiring research and evaluation in accordance with current FAA safety directives/orders. Responsibilities Provides expert technical knowledge and support to aviation safety inspectors, the general public, stakeholders, and airmen regarding a wide variety of aviation-related topics. Extracts safety data and information from FAA records to identify trends for items that affect aviation safety and enters technical findings in agency approved databases. This individual will provide technical assistance and/or support with certification, surveillance, investigation, and/or enforcement, examples include, but are not limited to: Certification Support • Provides technical support to ASIs during certification of operators and air agencies. • Reviews airmen certification files, submitted by designees for accuracy. • Reviews inspection authorization files for renewal eligibility. • Conducts Operational Color Vision Tests. • Reviews designee management system to determine renewal eligibility. • Compiles data for technical reports. Surveillance Support • Assists ASIs with surveillance of aviation events. • Assists in drafting and issuing waivers and authorizations. Investigation Support • Drafts Enforcement Investigative Reports (EIR) for review and final approval by an ASI • Acts as the Point of Contact (POC) for safety assets (PPE) related to accident investigations. Enforcement Support Incumbent will be responsible for enforcement functions including: conducting violations, voluntary disclosure, suspect illegal charters, incidents, navigation and altitude deviation investigations. Other • Provides technical support for special inspections, including a variety of the functions described in the previous paragraphs. • May conduct meetings or portions of meetings in support of technical work functions. • Prepares technical correspondence in support of assigned work functions. • Provides administrative support and project tracking utilizing required computer software. Requirements Conditions of Employment We are not accepting applications from noncitizens. Qualifications To qualify for this position at the FG-8 grade, you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FG/GS-7 level. Specialized experience includes: 1) Demonstrated accomplishment in practical technical aviation operations; 2) Computer skills or knowledge of common software applications; 3) Analytical skills, interpersonal skills and communication skills; 4) Experience gathering aviation safety data. To qualify for this position at the FG-9, you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-E, GS-/FG-8 level. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Specialized experience includes: 1) Demonstrated accomplishment in practical technical aviation operations; 2) Experience in using computerized database systems; 3) Experience in preparing technical reports; and 4) experience in researching, analyzing and providing recommendations. 4) Experience in gathering, compiling, and analyzing aviation safety data; 5) Experience in assisting in aviation investigations such as complaints, occurrences, incidents, accidents and/or violations. Please ensure you answer all questions and follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may impact rating or may result in not being considered for the job. Applicants should include examples of specialized experience in their work history. Qualifications must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Education Education is not qualifying for this position. Additional Information We may use this vacancy to fill other similar vacant positions. Position may be subject to a background investigation. A one-year probationary period may be required. The U.S. Department of Transportation strives to ensure that equity, transparency, accountability, collaboration, and communication permeate all that we do for the betterment of the Department, the traveling public, and our nation. As such, DOT values a highly diverse workforce of persons who promote a culture of belonging by respecting the personal dignity and worth of each individual and fostering a positive environment where all feel safe and welcome. If these commitments coincide with your personal ideals and professional aspirations, please consider joining the DOT family. This position is located in Irving, Texas. This position may be filled at the FG-8 or FG-9. Identification of promotion in the vacancy announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date. Promotion will depend upon the selectee meeting training, qualification requirements, and recommendation by the supervisor. As a part of the Federal-Wide Hiring Reform Initiative, the FAA is committed to eliminating the use of the Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) narratives from the application in the hiring process for all announcements. Therefore, as an applicant for this announcement, you are NOT required to provide a narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA. In lieu of providing a KSA narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA in your work history, please include information that provides specific examples of how you meet the response level or answer you choose for each KSA. Eligible applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements, if applicable, may be further evaluated on the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA) listed in the announcement. Based on this evaluation, applicants will be placed in one of the following categories: score order, category grouping, or priority grouping and referred to the selecting official for consideration. You may also be considered for this vacancy based on eligibility under the 30% or More Disabled Veteran Program, Veterans Recruitment Appointment, and Persons with Disabilities/Persons with Targeted Disabilities. To be considered for one of these special hiring authorities, you must identify your eligibility in your questionnaire in the Applicant-Preferred Conditions of Employment section. In addition, you must submit documentation that provides evidence of eligibility as indicated in the Required Documents section of the announcement. Some, all, or none will be interviewed. Interviews will be conducted IAW Agency Policy and/or applicable Collective Bargaining Unit Agreement. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay, COLA