Complete Detail at Bologna Guglielmo Marconi (LIPE)

What changes at Bologna Guglielmo Marconi for a multi-day detail?

Bologna sits at 123 feet elevation with a single runway, 12/30, measuring 2,803 metres. The airport operates twenty-four hours without curfew, and TAG Bologna—the airport operator's own general-aviation subsidiary—provides handling, refuelling and parking clearance around the clock after prior permission is received. AviaVIP also handles business aviation at the field. The dedicated GA terminal covers 1,100 square metres for passengers, with a 22,000-square-metre apron and a 2,000-square-metre hangar available for scheduled work.

Bologna is fully slot-coordinated, meaning every arrival and departure now requires an Assoclearance slot. For a complete detail lasting two to five days, the slot applies only to the movements; the ground time between is arranged as a parking reservation through the handler. Cold-soaked wings are rarely an issue at this elevation and latitude outside midwinter, but the hangar is the usual workspace for decontamination and polish regardless of season. If the aircraft remains on stand, we work early morning or late evening when apron activity is lightest and the paint is cool.

The handler expects a detailed schedule: arrival and departure slots, estimated hours for each stage of the detail, and a list of who will be airside and when. If the crew is not staying with the aircraft, the handler arranges an escort each time we enter the apron or hangar. For a multi-day visit, a single airside pass often covers the detailing team for the full period, simplifying access and reducing coordination overhead.

What does a complete detail include at this airport?

The service begins with an exterior dry wash or rinseless wash, depending on the handler's water policy and the season. We then decontaminate the paint to remove embedded contamination—industrial fallout, exhaust residue, insect protein—that washing alone will not shift. Single-stage polish follows, restoring gloss and leaving a hydrophobic surface that sheds water and resists new contamination. Brightwork—exhaust surrounds, nacelle lips, leading edges if polished rather than painted—is brought back to a uniform finish.

Inside, we detail the cabin from ceiling to floor: every surface is cleaned to OEM specification, leather is conditioned, carpets and soft furnishings are extracted or steam-cleaned, galley and lavatory are disinfected, and the flight deck receives a no-touch avionics clean. The final step is whole-aircraft disinfection using a hospital-grade fogging system that reaches every surface, including air vents and seat tracks. Before we begin and after we finish, we produce a photographic report that documents the condition and the work completed.

Duration depends on aircraft size and condition. A super-midsize jet in reasonable shape takes two to three days; an ultra-long-range aircraft or one that has been on charter without interim cleaning can extend to five days. The hangar is preferred for all stages: it protects the polish from dust, allows controlled temperature for product curing, and keeps the cabin work free from apron grit.

How do you handle access and logistics for a multi-day visit in Bologna?

Coordination begins when the slot and parking reservation are confirmed. We liaise with the chosen handler—TAG Bologna or AviaVIP—to arrange hangar availability, GPU if the aircraft will be powered down, and airside escort for the detailing crew. If the hangar is not available for the full period, we schedule the exterior work first, then move the aircraft inside for interior detail and disinfection. The handler provides a stand or hangar bay with sufficient clearance for scaffolding or lifts if the aircraft has a T-tail or tall winglets.

Our team arrives with all consumables, equipment and waste-disposal containers; nothing is left on the apron overnight. If the crew or a tech representative will be present, the handler arranges a briefing room or office space in the GA terminal. For longer visits, we update the captain or flight-department manager daily with progress photographs and any observations—paint chips that need touch-up, a belly panel with a loose fastener, gear-bay debris that should be logged. These notes go into the final report alongside the before-and-after images.

At a coordinated airport, timing matters. If the departure slot shifts, the handler notifies us immediately so we can adjust the final stages—cabin disinfection and a last wipe-down of the exterior—to finish an hour before the crew boards. We have never missed a slot due to detailing overrun, but we always build a half-day buffer into the schedule.

When does an operator choose a complete detail rather than separate visits?

Complete detail makes sense when the aircraft will be on the ground for another reason—scheduled maintenance, an avionics upgrade, a crew change between charter legs—and the downtime can absorb two to five days of appearance work. It is the standard preparation before a pre-buy inspection, where the aircraft must present in reference condition, and before delivery to a new owner or lessee. Some flight departments schedule a complete detail twice a year, spring and autumn, to bracket the busy season and the winter storage period.

The alternative is to split the work: exterior wash and polish on one visit, interior detail on another. That approach suits aircraft with tight schedules, but it doubles the coordination overhead, requires two sets of slots and parking reservations, and often costs more in handler fees than a single extended visit. At Bologna, where both handlers operate continuously and the hangar is reliably available, consolidating the work into one visit is usually the simpler choice.

Charter operators sometimes book a complete detail after a long lease or a tour that has left the cabin worn and the exterior dull. The photographic report then serves as a reset: the aircraft is returned to the standard expected at the start of the next charter block, and the documentation proves the condition to the client or the underwriter.

What does the handler need from a third-party detailing crew at Bologna?

The handler needs a clear scope of work, a schedule with arrival and departure times, and a list of personnel who will be airside. If we are using the hangar, the handler wants to know whether the aircraft will be powered down, whether we need a GPU or air-conditioning unit, and how much space we require around the airframe. For waste disposal—spent polish compound, used microfibre cloths, waste water from carpet extraction—the handler provides bins and arranges collection; we never leave waste on the ramp.

Insurance and liability documents are reviewed before the first visit. The handler also expects us to follow their safety rules: high-visibility vests, no loose tools near engines or control surfaces, and immediate reporting if we find anything unusual—a fluid leak, a panel that does not sit flush, a static port that should be flagged for the crew. We treat the handler as a partner in the work, not an obstacle; their local knowledge often prevents problems before they start.

If the aircraft will be moved between stand and hangar during the detail, the handler coordinates towing and notifies us of the timing. We ensure all equipment is clear of the aircraft and the area is clean before the tug arrives. At a busy airport like Bologna, where commercial traffic shares the airfield, a smooth handoff between handler and detailing crew is the difference between a job that finishes on schedule and one that disrupts the next slot.

What does the photographic report document?

The report begins with dated images of the aircraft as it arrives: overall views from each quarter, close-ups of any existing damage—paint chips, scratches, belly staining, worn cabin upholstery—and detail shots of areas that will receive specific attention, such as brightwork or the galley. These images establish the baseline and protect both the operator and the detailing crew if a question arises later about pre-existing condition.

After the work is complete, we photograph the same angles and areas. The report pairs before-and-after images side by side, with captions noting the process used—decontamination and single-stage polish on the fuselage, steam extraction on the cabin carpet, disinfection fogging in the lavatory. If we observe anything that should be logged or inspected—a loose fastener, a worn seal, corrosion on a belly panel—that goes into the report with a photograph and a recommendation.

The final document is delivered digitally within twenty-four hours of the aircraft's departure. Flight departments use it for their own records, for pre-buy documentation, or to demonstrate to a charter client that the aircraft has been restored to reference condition. Some operators include excerpts in marketing materials when the aircraft is listed for sale. The report is factual, not promotional: it shows what was done and what the aircraft looked like before and after.