Aviation Safety Inspector (General Aviation Maintenance)

USAJOBS
USAJOBS

Posted on Jul 28, 2026

Summary

This Aviation Safety Inspector is assigned to the General Aviation and Commercial Division, Delegation Branch, AFS-850 and serves as the technical expert concerning development and execution of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA's) designee program.

Major Duties

This position requires the application of independent judgment, technical expertise, a high degree of innovation, and critical thinking in accomplishing duties and identifying situations having impact on the agency's designee program and aviation safety. The incumbent of this position is responsible for applying expert knowledge of and experience with Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) for the development and implementation of policy, training, and oversight airworthiness designee operations. Performs assignments of great scope and unusual complexity in support of designee policy, training, oversight and the Flight Standards Inspector Resource Program (FSIRP). Maintains direct liaison and collaborates with pertinent Aviation Safety (AVS) offices as well as the designee community to ensure current and new policies, procedures, and practices are incorporated in the designee system. Through this collaboration, creates an effective interface to facilitate the flow of project activities. Provides clarification and support on current certification standards and evaluation techniques to FAA offices, FAA designees, and the aviation industry. Keeps abreast of new developments, procedures, products, and practices through liaison with industry organizations such as manufacturers, universities, training departments, and research groups. Works independently to analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of division policy in assigned programs areas. Develops policies, including advisory circulars, inspector guidelines, and training standards related to certification, inspection, surveillance and operation of assigned program areas. Reviews and evaluates, on a continuing basis, established rules and regulations to assure they have kept pace with needs to which they were directed and that they are still reasonable, necessary, and adequate. Assures effective coordination of assigned programs and activities with Safety Assurance offices, other organizational segments of the Division, the Agency and organizations outside of the agency. Participates in national and international working groups and panels with other organization elements of the agency, or other government agencies, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and industry representatives for the purpose of resolving complex and controversial problems having a direct influence on the safety of assigned technical programs and operations. Conducts or participates in group or team meetings which include representatives of other government agencies, the aviation industry, aviation organizations, state, municipal and foreign governments where assigned programs and responsibilities are involved. Often engages in a collaborative, interdependent team environment with internal and external stakeholders to promote safety, understanding, and compliance related to assigned programs. May represent the agency as a technical trainer/instructor for the planning, development, revision, and delivery of formal training for assigned technical programs. Appraises classroom performance of applicant's and designee's ability to plan and conduct evaluation and certification activities. Provides leadership to others in applying and providing authoritative technical expertise in the designee program. Exercises a high level of technical expertise and critical thinking to assess designees and certification procedures, policy changes, new legislation, rulemaking, new technology, and other significant technical issues to determine the impact on training programs. Prepares a variety of correspondence to other organizations within Flight Standards, aviation industry, other governmental agencies, members of Congress, and the general public, much of which is highly technical and of high priority.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Requirements

We are not accepting applications from noncitizens.

Evaluations

IMPORTANT: Applicants may be rated on the extent and quality of experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of the position(s). All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated. Ensure that your application package/resume supports your responses.

How to Apply

Applicants may be required to complete one or multiple assessments as part of the evaluation process. This assessment aims to evaluate the competencies and qualifications essential for the position. You must apply online to receive consideration. Your application must be submitted by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on the Close Date for it to be accepted. If you are applying for positions associated with FAA registers, your application must be submitted at the time a referral list is created in order to receive consideration for positions associated with a register. RESUMES ARE LIMITED TO TWO PAGES. IN DESCRIBING YOUR WORK EXPERIENCE AND/OR EDUCATION, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC AND INCLUDE INFORMATION AS IT RELATES TO THE QUALIFICATIONS AND SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS POSITION. Please ensure EACH work history includes ALL of the following information: Job Title (include series and grade if Federal Job) Relevant work experience: should align to the Job Announcement and address all required qualifications and include job title, employer name, start/end dates, number of hours worked per week. Education, certification or licensure: If required, education should include school/institution name, completion date, degree type and GPA. Determining length of General or Specialized Experience is dependent on the above information and failure to provide ALL of this information may result in a finding of ineligible. You may upload completed documents to your USAJOBS Account. This will provide you the opportunity to utilize the uploaded information again when applying for future vacancies.

What to Expect Next

Once we receive your complete application, the Human Resources Office will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications. Eligible and qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for consideration. You will be contacted directly if selected for an interview. For instructions on how to check the status of your application, please go to: USAJOBS Help Guide. Important - If you make any changes to your application, you must resubmit it. If you make changes to your application and do not resubmit it, your changes will not be considered part of your application package, and only your previously submitted application will be evaluated. All qualified applicants will be considered regardless of political affiliation, race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, age, disability, or other non-merit factors. DOT provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency contact listed in the Agency Contact Information section of this announcement or the hiring manager. An employee with a disability must notify the decision-maker of the accommodation request. Job applicants and employees are required to follow up oral requests in writing. Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. Additional information on reasonable accommodations procedures or on EEO Programs is available on Office of Civil Rights (ACR) or by contacting the local FAA Civil Rights Office.

Required Documents

Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50), must be submitted. If you are an FAA employee, you MUST provide a copy of your SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) containing information in Blocks 15, 17, 18, 19, 22, and 24 so it can be used to verify your position title, series, grade, tenure, and organization of record by the closing date of the announcement. You may fax your SF-50 or upload it into the on-line application. If faxing the SF-50, please ensure you include the vacancy announcement number on the faxed copy. If you are an FAA employee, you can access and print your SF-50 from the eOPF system https://eopf.opm.gov/dot/.

Other 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 person selected for this position may be required to file a financial disclosure statement within 30 days of entry on duty. FAA policy limits certain outside employment and financial investments in aviation-related companies. www.faa.gov/jobs/workinghere/financial-disclosure-requirements As a part of the Federal-Wide Hiring Reform Initiative (streamlining the hiring process), the FAA is committed to eliminating the use of the Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) narratives from the initial 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 chose for each KSA. Your work history examples should be specific and clearly reflect the highest level of ability. Your KSA answers will be evaluated further to validate whether the level that you selected is appropriate based on the work history and experience you provided. Your answers may be adjusted by a Human Resource Specialist as appropriate. How You Will Be Evaluated for Internal Announcements: Eligible applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements and selective factor(s), if applicable, may be further evaluated on the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA); Demonstrated Abilities; Leadership and Management Dimensions; or Other Factors listed in the announcement. Based on this evaluation, applicants will be placed in one of the following categories: score order, category grouping, or alphabetical and referred to the selecting official for consideration. Please ensure you answer all questions and follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may impact your rating or may result in you not being considered for the job. Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Applicants may be asked to verify information on your application for employment with the FAA. In-grade/downgrade applications will be accepted. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay, COLA