Northern Wings Aviation LLC

Northern Wings Aviation LLC James Ortman Division, based in Bozeman, Montana, operates as a for-profit Subchapter S Corporation providing on-call light fixed-wing aircraft rental and aerial firefighting support services to federal land-management agencies as a prime contractor, competing predominantly in full-and-open procurements without set-aside designations despite holding multiple small-business IDIQs and BPAs.

The vendor's capability portfolio centers on wildland fire management aviation: aerial wildfire monitoring and reconnaissance, personnel and cargo transport, direct aerial firefighting support, and wildlife survey operations. Representative recent work includes a $76,720 delivery order from the National Interagency Fire Center in September 2024 for aerial firefighting support, a $65,467 delivery order in September 2025 for wildland fire management operations under the same customer, and a $30,000 BPA call from the National Park Service Intermountain Region in May 2026 for aircraft rental supporting the Yellowstone Lake Cutthroat Telemetry Study in Wyoming.

Customer concentration is extreme and undiversified. The Department of Agriculture's Forest Service Fire and Aviation Management National Interagency Fire Center accounts for 37 of 59 total awards (63% by count) and $27.8 million of $47.3 million combined potential value (59% by dollars) across the five-year lookback window covered in the source. The Department of the Interior's subordinate offices place the remaining material volume: the Interior Business Center (3 awards, $10 million potential value) and the Office of Policy Management and Budget (1 award, $9.4 million potential value) represent the second and third tiers. Eight awards from USGS and small orders from BLM Montana-Dakotas and NPS Intermountain round out the active agency roster, but NIFC dominance leaves the vendor exposed to customer consolidation or budget volatility in a single bureau.

The vendor holds position on three named parent vehicles. The $7 million National Interagency Fire Center multiple-award IDIQ (contract 1202SA23T9421) runs through December 2033 with 11 task orders generating $650 thousand combined potential value; the $9.982 million Interior Business Center Blanket Purchase Agreement for on-call fixed-wing aircraft rental (contract IND12PA00086) runs through December 2027 with 11 task orders worth $39 thousand; and two Forest Service Basic Ordering Agreements (1202SA21G5104 and 1202SA21G5111) collectively account for 20 task orders valued at $1.4 million. Task orders are consistently small — typically ranging from sub-$100 thousand to low-six-figure values — reflecting the tactical, call-when-needed nature of the work.

Activity has been declining: 14 awards in 2022, dropping to 7 in 2023, 5 in 2024, 7 in 2025, and only 1 in 2026 year-to-date (though 2026 data ends in May). The combined potential value of $47.3 million masks severe recompete concentration: only $680 thousand in combined potential value reaches ultimate completion inside the next twenty-four months, leaving the vendor with limited near-term recompete exposure but also minimal revenue visibility across the agency's declining award velocity. Obligated dollars stand at $4.2 million (9% of combined potential value), indicating most awards remain unfunded or partially funded.

The vendor operates entirely as a prime (100% of awards, zero subcontract activity) with no named teaming relationships or sub-award footprint in the source material. All work is performed from Bozeman, Montana or subordinate fire-suppression locations across the Rocky Mountain region. NAICS characterization is narrow: 56 of 59 awards (95%) fall under Nonscheduled Chartered Passenger Air Transportation, with the remaining 3 in Nonscheduled Chartered Freight Air Transportation. PSC coding aligns tightly: 37 awards map to the Forest-Range Fire Suppression/Presuppression natural-resources category, and 20 to passenger air charter travel services, reflecting the vendor's laser focus on NIFC wildfire and survey aviation operations.