More details about the 36 firefighting helicopters awarded 90-day contracts

Korea Forest Service Air-Crane S-64
Ground and taxi test at the Medford airport October 21, 2019 for an Erickson Air-Crane purchased by the Korea Forest Service. Photo by Tim Crippin.

More details are trickling out about the 36 Type 1 and Type 2 helicopters that were awarded 90-day Exclusive Use (EU) contracts by the U.S. Forest Service in May, 2020. The agency is not releasing any information about the contracting of firefighting aircraft this Spring, but Fire Aviation has acquired documents that shed some light on the issue. Forest Service fire aviation contracts spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.

Below is the list that contains all  36 helicopter awards in one place.

helicopters contracts 90 day
Helicopters that received from the US Forest Service in May, 2020 guaranteed EU 90-day contracts — 24 Type 1 and 12 Type 2 helicopters. Information from the USFS.

The EU contracts for 24 Type 1 helicopters and 12 Type 2 helicopters are guaranteed for 90 days. These aircraft, based on the national Call When Needed agreement, are considered national aviation resources to be used for initial attack and large fire support. It will be possible to extend the contract period beyond 90 days depending on the national situation. The plan was for the helicopters to begin their Mandatory Availability Periods on June 1 or June 15.

In an internal memo, the Forest Service said the reason for the 90-day guaranteed contracts “…is part of an enhanced national response due to COVID-19 for the 2020 fire season.” But no doubt another reason has to be the fact that the previous four-year contract for Type 1 helicopters expired April 30, 2020. The new contract has been protested and it may not be adjudicated by the Government Accountability Office until September 8, 2020.

When the multi-year EU contracts for Type 1 helicopters were awarded earlier this month neither Erickson or Coulson appeared on the list. But on this 90-day contract, Coulson has six ships and Erickson has two. This could lead a person to believe that the Forest Service considers them to be officially classified as small businesses.

USFS awards 90-day contracts for 22 additional helicopters

The U.S. Forest Service has awarded 90-day contracts for an 22 additional helicopters that can lift at least 3,300 or 7,000 pounds. This second list was released by the agency May 13 and is a result of a solicitation requesting bids for  30 helicopters that were already on Call When Needed contracts in three tiers — capable of lifting up to 1,600, 3,300, or 7,000 pounds. The Forest Service was looking for 10 helicopters in each tier, if available, with Mandatory Availability Periods commencing on either June 1st or June 15th.

On May 9 the agency released a list of 14 helicopters for the >1,600 tier.

 

Contract wildfire Helicopter 90-day awards
Screenshot of the USFS list. May 13, 2020.

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Bob. Typos or errors, report them HERE.

90-Day contracts awarded for 14 firefighting helicopters

Forest Service Type 2 helicopter contracts
90-day USFS Contracts awarded May 8, 2020 for helicopters capable of lifting a 1600-pound payload.

The U.S. Forest Service has awarded 90-day contracts for 14 helicopters that can lift at least 1,600 pounds. The list was released by the agency May 8, and is a result of a solicitation requesting bids for  30 helicopters that were already on Call When Needed contracts in three tiers — capable of lifting up to 1,600, 3,300, or 7,000 pounds. The Forest Service was looking for 10 helicopters in each tier, if available, with Mandatory Availability Periods commencing on either June 1st or June 15th.

Released Friday were 14 helicopters in the >1,600 tier.

It remains to be seen if the agency will award additional 90-day helicopter contracts in the 3,300 and 7,000 pound tiers.

Bell 212 Kachina
File photo of a Bell 212 operated by Kachina Aviation, taken by Akradecki March 16, 2007.

As we wrote April 22, the four-year exclusive use contracts for Type 1 firefighting helicopters issued in 2016 expired April 30. Since new contracts based on the solicitation issued November 15, 2019 have not yet been awarded the Forest Service has given 30-day contracts to a handful of vendors. The agency has refused to provide to us any details about the 30-day contracts.

US Forest Service may contract for up to 30 more helicopters

helicopter HAI HELI-EXPO arrival landing anaheim california
A Eurocopter Super Puma AS 332L arrives at HAI HELI-EXPO in Anaheim, California January 24, 2020. It is registered to Horizon Helicopters in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada. Photo by Bill Gabbert.

The U.S. Forest Service has published a solicitation asking for bids that could add up to 30 helicopters to the firefighting fleet this summer.

Published April 22, the solicitation has a very quick turnaround date, with offers due April 27, 2020. In order to be eligible for this opportunity, parties applying must already have one of the 68 current Call When Needed agreements in place.

The Forest Service is asking for pricing proposals for Type 1 and 2 helicopters which would be available for a 90-day Mandatory Availability Period commencing on either June 1st or June 15th.

As we wrote April 22, the four-year exclusive use contracts for Type 1 firefighting helicopters issued in 2016 expire April 30. Since new contracts based on the solicitation issued November 15, 2019 have not yet been awarded the Forest Service has given 30-day contracts to a handful of vendors. The agency has refused to provide to us any details about the 30-day contracts.

Since many of their procurement actions for firefighting aircraft are protested, delaying activation for several months, these 90-day contracts for up to 30 helicopters may be a safety net in case of a protest. If a company receives one of the Type 1 EU contracts, the Forest Service “will then remove your awarded helicopter from consideration for this one-time [90-day] opportunity.”

On April 6, 2018 the Forest Service awarded EU contracts for 34 Type 2 firefighting helicopters. The duration was for one base year through April 30, 2019, with the possibility of 3 one-year renewal option periods. The U.S. Forest Service has shown by how they manage the air tanker and Type 1 helicopter contracts that the option periods are definitely not a sure thing after cutting those aircraft during recent optional years.

This possible increase in the number of helicopters is presumably a response to what could a diminished firefighting capability during the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 23 Fire Aviation called for a large increase in the numbers of aviation resources:

Congress needs to appropriate enough funding to have 40 large air tankers on exclusive use contracts. Until that takes place and the aircraft are sitting on ramps at air tanker bases, all 17 of the large air tankers on call when needed contracts need to be activated this summer. Right now, only one large air tanker is working.

Several years ago the number of the largest helicopters on EU contracts, Type 1, were cut from 34 to 28. This number needs to be increased to 50. Until that happens 22 CWN Type 1 helicopters should be activated this summer.

If this temporary increase in the Type 1 and Type 2 helicopter fleets actually occurs, unimpeded by contract protests, it is the right thing to do.

The next action that needs to be taken is a similar increase in the fixed wing fleet this summer.

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Sean. Typos or errors, report them HERE.