Quick Turn at Friedrichshafen (Bodensee-Airport) (EDNY)

How does airside access work at Friedrichshafen for a third-party detailing crew?

AVICON holds the general-aviation handling concession at Friedrichshafen and controls apron access. We coordinate every turnaround through the handler: arrival slot, stand assignment, GPU and airside escort. The handler expects advance notice—typically 24 hours for a first visit, shorter for recurring work—so the escort and apron vehicle can be scheduled.

Once the aircraft is on stand and chocks are in, the handler radios us through. We drive airside with our own kit: vacuum, microfibre, waterless wash concentrate, bin liners and scent neutraliser. The escort remains within sight but does not enter the cabin unless requested. If you are operating a regular shuttle or a multi-day charter programme, AVICON will often assign the same stand and the same ground contact, which speeds the rhythm considerably.

Cold-soaked fuel and belly frost are occasional considerations between November and March at this elevation, so we check the lower fuselage and gear-bay lips before any exterior wipe. If leading-edge ice is present, we defer the nose wipe until after engine start or recommend a dry cloth once the surface warms.

What happens during the Quick Turn itself?

The sequence is designed around your block time. Cabin first: we vacuum the aisle, seats and galley floor, wipe every tray table, armrest and touchpoint, then empty the lav bin and wipe the basin, mirror and touchpoints. Galley bins are emptied, counter wiped, and restocked with whatever consumables your crew has staged—cups, napkins, snack baskets. We do not bring catering; if you need provisioning, that comes through the handler or your caterer separately.

Windows next, cockpit and cabin, inside only. We use distilled water and lint-free cloth so no streaks remain on the glareshield or the passenger panes. Then the exterior wipe: a rinseless concentrate applied with a damp microfibre to the nose cone, cockpit windscreens, leading edges of the wing and horizontal stabiliser, and the area around the entry door. This is not a wash—it is a wipe to remove dust, fingerprints and light residue so the aircraft looks sharp for the next leg.

Trash comes off the aircraft in sealed bags, handed to the handler's ground crew or placed in the designated bin near the stand. If the cabin carried catering waste, we double-bag it. Final step: a light air-neutraliser mist if the cabin has been closed up for more than an hour. Total elapsed time is usually 60 minutes for a super-midsize, 75 for a large-cabin, 90 if the galley was heavily used or if we are working around passenger embarkation.

What changes at Friedrichshafen (Bodensee-Airport) that affects turnaround timing?

Friedrichshafen operates a single runway, 06/24, 2,356 metres long, at an elevation of 1,367 feet. The airport is not slot-coordinated and does not appear on the German FLUKO Level 2 or Level 3 lists, so PPR is straightforward and delays are rare outside the AERO Friedrichshafen week in April. That trade fair brings Europe's largest concentration of general-aviation movements to the field for five days; the ramp, the adjacent Messe grounds and every stand at AVICON are occupied. If your turnaround falls during AERO, book the Quick Turn a month ahead and expect the handler to assign a stand farther from the terminal, sometimes on grass hardstanding if the paved apron is full.

AVICON operates from the general-aviation area at Am Flugplatz 64. There is no separate FBO terminal building; handling, crew facilities and ramp coordination all run from the same office. The handler provides GPU, lavatory service and potable water on request. The distance to Friedrichshafen city centre is 3.7 kilometres, so if your passengers are continuing by car to the lakeside hotels or across the border into Austria or Switzerland, ground transport is brief.

Weather is temperate but winter mornings can bring low cloud, and the lake effect occasionally produces fog that lifts by mid-morning. We carry wheel chocks in the van so if the handler is busy we can place them ourselves under supervision, shaving a few minutes off the start of the turnaround.

When does a Quick Turn make sense at Friedrichshafen rather than a deeper clean?

Quick Turn suits multi-leg days: morning positioning from Munich or Zürich, midday turnaround at Friedrichshafen, afternoon departure to Milan or Paris. The cabin has been occupied for an hour or two, the galley used lightly, and the exterior has picked up apron dust and fingerprints around the door. A full exterior wash or interior deep-clean would consume three to four hours and push the next departure into the evening; the Quick Turn keeps you on schedule.

It also suits recurring shuttle work—weekly executive transport around the Lake Constance region, or a charter programme during the spring trade-fair season. One operator runs a Friday-afternoon rotation from London Biggin Hill to Friedrichshafen and back every week for the same corporate client; we Quick Turn the aircraft during the two-hour ground stop, and every fourth week we schedule a deeper interior detail overnight at the home base.

If the aircraft has been sitting for more than three days, or if the cabin needs galley appliance cleaning, sidewall wipe-down or a proper exterior wash, the Quick Turn is not enough. In that case we recommend booking the full Interior Detail or a Dry Wash, both of which we also offer at EDNY when the ground time allows.

How do I book a Quick Turn at Friedrichshafen, and what do you need from me?

Email or call us as soon as you have the inbound slot. We need the registration, aircraft type, estimated chocks-on time, and planned departure time. If AVICON is already your handler, share the handling order reference so we can coordinate directly with their ramp supervisor. If you are using a different handler or if this is your first visit to EDNY, we will make contact on your behalf and arrange the airside escort and stand access.

Tell us what you want restocked—galley consumables, lav supplies, bin liners—and whether you will have them on board or whether the handler should stage them. If you prefer a specific cabin scent or want us to skip the neutraliser, note that in the booking. For recurring work we keep a standing profile: preferred contact, typical turnaround window, any no-touch avionics or OEM cabin-material restrictions.

Payment is by invoice after the work, usually consolidated monthly for fleet customers or per event for one-off charters. We do not require a purchase order, but if your finance department needs one we will wait for it. Cancellations inside two hours of the scheduled start may carry a call-out fee if the crew is already en route to the airport; beyond two hours there is no charge.

What should the flight crew expect on the ramp during the Quick Turn?

Once you are on chocks and the handler has positioned the GPU, we will approach the aircraft from the apron vehicle, usually within five minutes. The captain or the handling agent will open the door; we do not carry airstairs, so the handler's stairs or the aircraft's integral stairs must be in place first. If passengers are disembarking, we wait until they are clear before boarding.

We work quietly and quickly. The cockpit is not disturbed unless you ask us to wipe the glareshield or the windows; otherwise we stay aft of the cockpit door. If you are completing the tech log or coordinating the next departure with ATC, you will barely notice we are there. When the exterior wipe is finished, we knock once on the door frame to let you know we are done and stepping off.

If the next leg is boarding while we are still inside, we pause the vacuum and step into the galley or lav so passengers can move freely down the aisle. The handler will usually board passengers from the front, so the aft cabin can be finished last. If weather is marginal and you want pitot covers or inlet bungs checked, tell us during the booking and we will inspect them before we leave the apron.