JL Aviation, Inc.

JL Aviation, Inc., a veteran-owned small business based in Boring, Oregon, provides on-call Type III helicopter flight services to the Department of the Interior and U.S. Department of Agriculture as a prime contractor under multiple indefinite-delivery contracts set aside for small business participation. The vendor operates exclusively as a prime across 102 federal awards with combined potential value of $125.7 million.

The company's capability footprint centers on specialized aerial survey and transport operations for natural resource management, wildlife population monitoring, wildland fire support, and scientific research missions. Representative work includes a $75,436 delivery order from the U.S. Geological Survey for Cascades Range monitoring in Washington and Oregon (awarded March 31, 2026, ultimate completion March 30, 2027); a $82,257 delivery order from USGS for Central Cascade scientific monitoring (awarded May 21, 2024); a $108,806 delivery order to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for sage-grouse comprehensive survey support at Sheldon-Hart National Wildlife Refuge (awarded July 20, 2023); and a $66,100 delivery order from FWS Region 1 for wildlife surveys at Sheldon-Hart Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex (awarded October 1, 2025, ultimate completion September 30, 2026). Work is performed across the Pacific Northwest, primarily in Oregon and Washington, with operational footprint extending to Idaho, Nevada, and Arizona regions.

Customer concentration is heavily weighted to the Department of the Interior. The Interior Business Center accounts for 8 awards carrying $73 million in combined potential value, followed by Interior's Office of Policy Management and Budget ($40.1 million across 2 awards), though the latter figure reflects the $49.5 million IDV ceiling. By volume, the U.S. Geological Survey Office of Acquisitions and Grants and Fish and Wildlife Service Region 1 each represent 10 awards. Together, the top five customer accounting nodes represent 37% of award count and 98% of combined potential value. The USDA Forest Service Fire and Aviation Management program accounts for $3.8 million across 3 awards.

JL Aviation holds two active primary IDV vehicles. The larger, the On-Call Type III Helicopter Flight Services 2022-2027 contract, carries a $49.5 million ceiling, is set aside for total small business, and has generated 13 task orders under the source's coverage window (combined potential value $632 thousand). An earlier DOI On-Call Helicopter Flight Services 2017-2018 contract produced 20 task orders valued at $758 thousand. A USDA Forest Service indefinite-delivery contract valued at $3.5 million ran through January 2024 and supported wildland fire operations. The vendor also operates under blanket purchase agreements: 19 task orders are recorded against BPA IND80ARA6561, and additional task orders flow through regional BPAs with BLM and BIA.

Activity has decelerated in recent years. The vendor averaged 6 to 7 awards annually from 2022 through 2023, declining to 3 awards each in 2024 and 2025, with 1 award recorded in 2026. Only 2 awards face ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, carrying combined potential value of $142 thousand, signaling minimal near-term recompete exposure on the prime footprint. Combined dollars obligated across all awards total $5.1 million (4% of combined potential value), indicating a substantial pipeline of unobligated potential under existing task orders.

Helicopter Charter Services operating a Bell Jet Ranger III and a Bell Long Ranger