Exterior Dry Wash at Genova Cristoforo Colombo (LIMJ)

How does waterless cleaning work on the apron at Genova?

We arrive airside with spray bottles, microfibre cloths and degreasing compounds that meet OEM no-rinse specifications. The process starts at the nose: pre-spray to lift contaminants, wipe in overlapping passes to avoid streaking, then a second cloth to buff. Bug residue on the radome and leading edges gets a dedicated citrus-based remover; exhaust carbon around the nacelle outlets needs a heavier degreaser and more dwell time.

Belly work and gear-bay cleaning happen with the aircraft on its own wheels—no jacks, no tow required. We avoid pitot probes, static ports and any no-touch avionics fairings. The final pass covers exterior windows, position lights and any accessible brightwork. Because nothing runs off onto the apron, there are no environmental-compliance delays and no need to reposition the aircraft to a wash pad that does not exist at this airport.

A super-midsize typically takes four to five hours; an ultra-long-range airframe with high belly-mounted APU exhaust and complex winglet geometry can stretch to eight. If you are on a tight slot, we prioritise visible surfaces—fuselage sides, cheat line, windscreen—and defer the belly to the next station.

What changes at Genova Cristoforo Colombo?

The runway lies on an artificial peninsula at thirteen feet above sea level, directly on the sea. Every aircraft parked here breathes salt air from the moment the engines shut down. That constant marine exposure accelerates corrosion on unpainted aluminium—spinner backs, gear struts, hinge brackets—and leaves a fine saline film on painted surfaces that attracts dust and holds moisture against the clear coat.

Runway 10/28 is 2916 metres, adequate for the largest business jets, but the apron geometry and the single-runway layout mean stand assignments change with wind and traffic flow. We coordinate through handling agents present at the airport to confirm your parking position and secure airside escort as soon as you file the handling request. There is no curfew, so night stops and early-morning departures are routine; we schedule dry washes during quieter evening hours when apron movement is lighter and the crew has left for the hotel.

Genoa city centre sits 7.4 kilometres to the west. If your principal is overnighting downtown and you want the aircraft clean for a mid-morning departure, an evening wash—started after the last passenger leaves and finished before the morning brief—keeps the operation invisible and the aircraft ready on the apron.

When does a dry wash make sense instead of a full water wash?

If the paint is heavily oxidised or you see chalking when you run a glove across the fuselage, a dry wash will only move the problem around; that airframe needs a proper decon and single-stage polish in a hangar. But for an aircraft in regular service—weekly or twice-weekly legs—a waterless clean every two to four weeks keeps the exterior presentable and removes the corrosive salt film before it etches the clear coat.

Operators flying coastal routes—Nice, Olbia, Palma, the French Riviera—find that a dry wash at Genova between legs maintains the baseline so the next full wash, wherever it happens, takes less time and less compound. Charter fleets use it as a bridge service: deep clean at home base every quarter, dry wash at line stations to keep the cabin-door impression consistent.

Dry wash also suits AOG situations. If you are waiting on a part and the aircraft will sit on the ramp for thirty-six hours, a waterless exterior prevents the 'abandoned' look and reassures the principal that the flight department is managing every detail, even when the schedule has collapsed.

What about belly degreasing and landing-gear cleaning?

Belly work is where a dry wash earns its keep. Hydraulic mist, oil seepage from the APU bay and brake dust accumulate faster than most crews realise, and a dirty belly tells every line technician and handler that the aircraft is not being maintained to the standard the exterior suggests. We use a citrus degreaser that breaks down petroleum films without attacking seals or composites, applied with stiff brushes in the gear bays and wiped clean around the keel and aft fuselage.

Gear struts, bogies and brake assemblies get individual attention: we remove road grime and standing water that holds chlorides against the metal. On aircraft that operate from shorter runways or grass-adjacent aprons, we also clean out packed dirt from wheel wells and inspect for FOD that might have been kicked up during taxi.

This is not a pre-purchase inspection, but we note anything unusual—fluid pooling, loose fasteners, chafed hoses—in a walk-around summary handed to the captain or engineer before we leave. The degreasing adds roughly ninety minutes to the overall job, but it extends the interval before the next heavy wash and keeps corrosion from starting in hidden pockets.

How do you schedule a dry wash around our flight programme at Genova?

Tell us your arrival time, turnaround window and any PPR constraints. If you are dropping passengers and departing two hours later, we cannot complete a full exterior, but we can do a windscreen-and-cheat-line touch-up in thirty minutes while catering and fuel are being loaded. If you are staying overnight, we start as soon as the aircraft is chocked and the APU is on GPU power, finishing before the crew returns in the morning.

For aircraft based at Genova—either long-term charter positioning or a corporate home base—we offer a standing order: dry wash every two weeks, tech-log entry emailed to the chief pilot, invoiced monthly. That rhythm keeps salt accumulation in check and means you never arrive to find streaks on the fuselage the morning of a board meeting.

We work through handling agents present at the airport for airside access and stand coordination. You do not need to arrange anything beyond the normal handling request; we bring our own equipment, our own water (for final window polish), and our own insurance. If the aircraft moves to a different stand mid-job because of traffic, we move with it.

What happens if weather interrupts the job or the aircraft has to depart early?

Ligurian weather is generally cooperative—rain is more common in autumn and winter, but even then it rarely persists all day. If we are halfway through and you get an unexpected departure slot, we prioritise the starboard side (the side the principal sees on approach), the entry door and the windscreen, then release the aircraft. The port side and belly can be finished at the next station or on your return.

If rain starts during the job, we pause; waterless products emulsify contaminants but do not rinse them away, so rain will streak a half-cleaned surface. Once the apron dries—usually within an hour near the coast—we resume. For winter night work, temperature is rarely an issue at sea level; we have worked comfortably down to two or three degrees without product performance dropping off.

Early departure is more common than weather. If you call two hours before we are scheduled to finish, we make a judgement: if the visible work is done and only the belly remains, we let you go and credit the unfinished portion. If the fuselage is still wet with product, we ask for thirty minutes to complete the buffing so you do not depart with streaks that will bake on in sunlight at altitude.