How the five and ten year contracts youre looking at will affect us and benefit us and what we need to put into our budget to so that the Forest Service has the necessary equipment to address these wildfires?, We are studying the question about going to a 10-year contract, what the pros and cons are, Chief Christiansen said. Were nearly complete with that report. You guys (and gals) should possess enough experience to influence how contracts are conceptualized, and bring some common sense back to the process, Nobody should bid, then when everything is on fire and the USFS comes begging then youd have some leverage on them.. Shame on them!! In 2020 the agency started out with 13 on . The partners to the USFS are all moving that direction with their purchases of Firehawks. National Incident Management Organization (NIMO) Support Forest Service says there's not enough time to issue new helicopter See what happens when the arrogant customer has no place shop! One vendor said new requirements could reduce the number of helicopters on contract. Do you know anything that can replace a CH-54/S-64 or an S-61? Through the use of Preseason Agreements and by partnering with the U.S. Forest Service Region 6 Fire Aviation Contracting Team (FACT), through VIPR contracts, DNR is able to pull in outside resources quickly if needed. All Standard and Restricted category Type 1, 2 and 3 helicopter contracts awarded under the USFS Type 1, 2 and 3 2022 Multiple Award Task Order (MATOC) Helicopter Support . Temp Tower Ordering Guidance - Central Service Area (ND) (2022-2027) Interagency Emergency Helicopter Extraction List. In my lifetime, I will not see the beauty I once hiked. The USFS cooperates with CAL FIRE, US Department of Interior agencies Bureau of. There is no cost, and in case you change your mind each email has an unsubscribe button. The banker looks at your household income and job stability. So given that the PM and the HS are both aviation folks, this means that they have certain goals that they are trying to achieve given the shape that the Solicitation is taking. There just isnt enough. Civil, Firefighting, News, US Forest Service Air resources were cancelled at the Forest level, isnt that correct? A series of water drops can enable hand crews to make steady progress on active flanks of the fire. What a crock of crap! The Bush fire WAS aggressively IAd, however given the fuel and weather conditions at the time escaped rather quickly. It has been lightly edited. Without a federal contract, we cant get carded and without cards, we cant work for the state. She saidUp to 30 additional Type 1 helicoptersare on Call When Needed contracts, which includes the six that no longer have EU contracts. My sympathies lean towards the contractors who despite expending capital, training pilots and mechanics etc. They can be fitted with tanks or buckets to deliver water and fire retardant to the fireline. Our suggestion is to prioritize the defense and protection of our citizens, homeland, forests, parks, grasslands, refuges, prairies, and wildlands FIRST, before considering spending trillions on the other side of the world. Local Small Business Specialist On the contractor side, if you want to bid on a contract without those things, fine, lets see how important they really are for the mission by whether the FS still go for the low bid or walk the walk and share the expense of upgrades. I would be interested to see more reporting on why the USFS is making this transition now and how they made the decisions. Its unimaginable that they have created a situation where its likely there will not be a sustainable source for fire aircraft. on USFS to contract for 48 Type 1 helicopters this year, on Only 403 of requests for Type 1 helicopters were filled on wildfires in 2017, USFS to contract for 48 Type 1 helicopters this year, Only 40% of requests for Type 1 helicopters were filled on wildfires in 2017, U.S. Forest Service had contracted for 34 EU Type 1 ships, revealed that the six helicopters were being cut, does not make an independent recommendation, Lockheed looks ahead to advancing capability in wildland firefighting, Aerial Firefighters Association to promote safety, standards, innovation, Coulson tanker down in Western Australia, pilots okay, Helicopter crash kills 2 in Chilean fires, Prineville, Oregon (BK-1200) Swanson Group Aviation, Helena, Montana (BK-1200) Central Helicopters, Hamilton, Montana (BV-107) Columbia Helicopters, Custer, South Dakota (BV-107) Columbia Helicopters, Lancaster, California (CH-54A) Siller Helicopters, Minden, Nevada (CH-54A) Helicopter Transport Services. In addition the Logistics Branch provides procurement support for eleven National Cachesfor wildland fire suppression and prevention, as well as other emergency incident response activities. A!ican Elephant. How about awarding bid points to the bidders, which convert to costs paid by the organization hiring the aircraft, for those things that a joint committee feels may be potential benefits to the basic mission of air attack or supression missions. Type 1 are known as Interagency Hotshots Crews (IHC), faster production, highly skilled, extensive training, advanced qualifications, and arduous physical standards. Office: (208) 387-5682 Mobile: (208) 407-6003, Andrea Marks-Cash, Contract Specialist In 2018 when the Forest Service began issuing one-year contracts for air tankers we wrote: Few if any vendors can simply write a check to purchase and convert an air tanker, so they have to convince a lender to give them large sums of money usually even before they have a contract with the USFS. |2020 Executive Summary 2 Table 1 - CY 2020 Forest Service Aircraft Fleet Summary Number of Aircraft Helicopters Exclusive Use (EXU) 102 Call When Needed (CWN) 520 Agency Owned 3 Airtankers contract # manager/admin base/phone tanker/ac type/ n # iab approved tank size map days estimated map start estimated map end day off daily av rate hrly ft rate (dry) . Office: (208) 387-5350Mobile: (208) 258-1450, Tessa Bach, Contract Coordinator Smaller helicopters carry water in buckets that hold between 100-400 gallons of water. In December, 2017 the US Forest Service cancelled a five-year EU contract it had issued the previous year for two CL-415 water scooping air tankers. Bill wrote 3 sentences without even putting his opinion in, the overwhelming response is that the only people happy or satisfied with this RFP are the people who wrote it. And they are cheap azzs that wont pay much for anything. The administrative bases of the helicopters will be at 48 locations. Then why are one year contracts with optional years considered a sustainable way for helicopter companies to provide helicopters for fire fighting? Have a fire aviation news tip? With the twin engine requirement would a K-Max also be DQd? CO Support on all major contract programs (Mobile Food Services, Mobile Showers, Type 2 & 2-IA Crews, Retardant Chemicals), Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) Alternate Focal Point Thats rarely happened before b/c a) its a lot of $$$ and b) the states also believed that they would get aerial resources when needed, but they got burned by that hope, literallyyou may think you can grab it, but think again in tough times.State will think about State first before sharing the resource.it will get more interesting when France, Spain, Greece and Turkey take these assetssleep well FSyou guys are managing the LATs and Type 1s welltheyll always be there for you.keep up the good workwell done. Why are only Types III and II legacy helicopters being phased out? Continual outflanking of the crews. A lock ( while simultaneously saying that they fully intend on moving to modern helicopters that are built after the year 2000 and are all twin engine. Well, maybe in some locations. We really love being on Team USFS. Vendors reserve the right to refuse service to the customer that is rude, arrogant and disrespectful. Modular AirborneFirefighting System (MAFFS) Mechanics Incident Procurement Modernization Team Member. The agency has posted a second draft of a new Request for Proposals (RFP) and will hold a virtual meeting about the contracts on September 29. Click here. All perpetuated by the Gov. Maybe all of the experienced aviation folks you mention are part of this have never actually had to buy a multi-million a/c, maintain it, crew it and ensure that its operable? What about the forty plus miles along the highway- was that part of the aggressive initial attack or the aggressive firing operations? I know we arent alone in how upset we are with the Forest Service right now. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) Focal Point, Mike McFarlane,Contracting Officer endstream endobj startxref We all understand that. I agree, to me aggressive initial attack means sending aircraft during initial response, but thats not happening anywhere except CA, that I know of. I think you answered your own question with why are they only replacing type II and III legacy platforms and not type I? Ignoring the facts of what that aircraft can actually carry, not what the vendor claims. All the experienced aviation folks leading the latest helo RFP need to know that what youre proposing will lead to less a/c and more accidents/deaths. Just curious on what you think would have made the difference as the Initial Attack IC? I find it interesting that the WFT crowd is pro a next gen, advanced air tanker fleet (including the funding required) but is up in arms about a next gen, advanced helicopter fleet. usfs type 1 helicopter contracts 2021 - fotodelione.lt SD3-60 Sherpas;Avionics; Maintenance The FS doesnt seem to trust the input from the industry on this, so maybe the FS should ask the people who provide the mortgage? The U.S. Forest Service (FS) is expecting to contract for 48 Type 1 helicopters for the 2021 wildfire season. Exactly. These large helicopters are beloved by wildland firefighters, since they can strategically drop with pinpoint accuracy thousands of gallons of water or retardant while working close air support with ground personnel. I would encourage folks to contact their Congressional Representatives (once again) about problems with government contracting for fire-fighting aircraft. Maybe all of the experienced aviation folks you mention are part of this have never actually had to buy a multi-million a/c, maintain it, crew it and ensure that its safely operable? Let the operators upgrade when if/it will work. Official websites use .gov Modular AirborneFirefighting System (MAFFS) Mechanics usfs type 1 helicopter contracts 2021 - jaivikinteriorvaastu.com DOI/OAS & Interagency Aviation Bulletins. Large Jet Transport Typos, let us know, and please keep in mind the commenting ground rules before you post a comment. As I indicated, Im very interested in more reporting on this from the customer side of the table, IE the USFS as well as industry. Cost Code Equipment Specifications Capacity or Size HP Notes Unit 2021 Rate; 8010: Air Compressor: Air Delivery: 41 CFM: to 10: Hoses included. Helicopters cost pennies in comparison if you need to cancel them (or nothing if they dont even get off the ground!). Although I dont know if this counts as a legacy platform. It seems nothing is making sense anymore, and we are destined to fail if this shortsightedness is allowed to continue. Light Operational Loads Monitoring Systems (OLMS) We are all for the push for better equipment for our wildland fire efforts but the USFS cant do the change this suddenly and without any industry input. 9-Mar-2021 Source: Fire Aviation. Much of the defense budget is spent in countries on the other side of the world. 0 Large Airtankers (LATs) can deliver from 2,000 to 4,000 gallons of fire retardant to support firefighters on the ground. Here is the full text from the December 13 update: The intent of the USFS for acquiring helicopter services for 2022 is as follows: 1. There is obviously some back door dealing going on with this RFP as it very specifically pushes money to certain equipment providers and tips the hat to certain helicopter companies. PDF Aviation Annual Report - US Forest Service This draft RFP is such a massive and violent change from what has been requested in previous contracts that most operators arent going to be able to handle it. The FS would gladly issue multi-year contracts (vs. base year + options). Not entirely true.why would a state find the funding to contract with a LAT provider??? BTW, does anyone flying on fires really need an ELT if they have ADSB? mudslides will come erosion. The Branch is comprised of two teams; aviation and logistics. You want a loud hailer, fork it over. Aviation for Regions 1, 2, & 9, 10 So wed be glad to discuss more about air tankers. There is no cost, and in case you change your mind each email has an unsubscribe button. Just another site. With the expiration of contracts for firefighting helicopters looming, the US Forest Service began the lengthy process of issuing new contracts for 2022 on July 7, 2021 with the posting of a presolicitation. The new concept was based on a one year contract.