2014 FALT Aviation Update Stevenson WA November 2014

2014 FALT Aviation Update Stevenson, WA November 2014 Dave Glose USFS AK/PNW Helicopter Program Manager Office: 541. 504. 7274 Cell: 541. 408. 7276

USFS & BLM Aviation Safety • FY 2011 - first accident free year in 50 years • 2014 - Fourth consecutive year without a reportable Forest Service accident • Current accident rates indicates a significant decrease in the 10 -year trend for FS & BLM • Why have we experienced such success? – Training – Safety Management Programs – Added Oversight (Airworthiness, Pilot Inspectors) – QA

BLM Aviation 10 -YR Accident Rate 12 10 9. 8 7. 8 8 6. 6 6 6. 6 5. 4 5. 7 4 3. 2 3. 5 2 0 0 14 20 13 20 12 20 11 Trendline 20 10 20 09 20 08 20 07 20 06 20 05 20 Accident Rate 0

USFS Aviation 10 -YR Accident Rate 9 8 8. 17 7 6 5 4. 96 4. 46 4. 07 5. 21 4. 46 4 3 2 1 20 14 0 13 0 12 11 Trendline 20 10 20 09 20 08 20 07 20 06 20 05 20 Accident Rate 0 20 0

PNW Helicopter Flt. Hours – 5 Yrs. 10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 BLM Heli Flt Hrs 4000 FS Heli Flt Hrs 3000 2000 1000 0 2011 2012 2013 2014

PNW FW Flt. Hours – 5 Yrs. 10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 BLM FW Flt Hrs 4000 FS FW Flt Hrs 3000 2000 1000 0 2011 2012 2013 2014

AK Heli & FW Flt. Hours – 5 Yrs. 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 Heli Flt Hrs 2000 FW Flt Hrs 1500 1000 500 0 2011 2012 2013 2014

Smokejumper Program USFS C-23 B+ Sherpas • Up to 15 Aircraft will be Transferred from the Do. D • Smokejumper Mission • Personnel Transport • GOMO - Govt. Owned/ Mixed Operated • FOR and Flight Rate Unknown

Helicopter Program Emergency Helicopter Extraction (Short-Haul)

Helicopter Program Emergency Helicopter Extraction (Short-Haul) • The Forest Service is working to activate two programs in 2015 – One each in R 6 and R 4 • PNW and the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest are working towards activating the R 6 program • If successful, there are plans to expand to other Forests in the future

Helicopter Program Emergency Helicopter Extraction (Short-Haul) • Current recommendation is to have 10 -person modules with at least 3 EMTB’s per crew • Will utilize high performance Type 3 helicopters • Aircraft and crews’ primary mission will continue to be IA

Helicopter Program Emergency Helicopter Extraction (Short-Haul) Progress to Date: • First Edition of the an Operations Guide has been completed • Equipment systems have been modified to address initial issues– further evaluation of equipment is occurring this week • Pilot evaluation standards have been refined • Training dates and venues have been established for 2015

Helicopter Program Emergency Helicopter Extraction (Short-Haul) What is Left to Complete: • Finalizing a few equipment components • Developing medical qualification capacity • Developing a reporting and status tool to facilitate ordering and responsiveness

Cooperator Aviation Assets

Cooperator Aviation Assets FS/DOI Policy: • Use Government Aircraft (federally owned, contracted, leased, etc. ) to accomplish aviation mission flights • Promote maximum utilization of FS/DOI aircraft as the first source of aviation services, when available and cost effective • Cooperator Aircraft may be used on federal incidents if approved by letter and when FS/DOI or other Government Aircraft are not readily available

Cooperator Aviation Assets • Cooperator Aircraft (FEPP or contracted) offered for use on Federal incident are subject to the same standards as FS owned and contracted aircraft – verified thru equipment inspections and pilot evaluations in accordance with NASF Cooperator Fire Standards • Cooperator Aircraft that have Federal Contracts and are carded to those contract requirements need no further inspections – Approval Letter is still necessary in order to provide services on federal incidents

Cooperator Aviation Assets Operational Requirements: • Many standards and policies regarding the use of aircraft are similar between Agencies and States – when differences exist, the policy standards of the agency receiving the services (agency that ordered and pays) apply: – – FSM 5700/DOI DM All aspect of the IHOG Other Operational Guides and direction as applicable Aviation Personnel must meet minimum qualification standards for the positions (PMS 310 -1)

Cooperator Aviation Assets National Guard Aircraft and Pilots: • National Guard pilots receive annual orientation and safety briefing from USFS or DOI Helicopter Inspector Pilots • Pilots must meet minimum readiness level and training standards in order to perform fire missions • Aircraft Inspections are waived at this time but must meet minimum equipment standards in accordance with agreements with States • Operational standards are defined in State Agreements (e. g. , OPlan Smokey) • Cooperator Letter of Approval issued for NG aircraft and pilots

Cooperator Aviation Assets Approval Process: • Requests for approval of aircraft made to the Asst. Fire Director, Aviation • Requests will be considered but only accepted based upon local interagency value • Target a 30 -day time period to accomplish inspections and issue an Approval Letter • Letters are jointly issued by FS and OAS/DOI

Questions?