Full Interior Detail at Girona-Costa Brava (LEGE)

What changes at Girona-Costa Brava for cabin detailing?

Girona-Costa Brava sits at 469 ft elevation with a single 2,400-metre runway (01/19), handling both scheduled traffic and a steady flow of business aviation during the summer season. The airport operates H24 with no published curfew, and customs and immigration are available during aerodrome hours—meaning arrivals and cabin work can be scheduled around the clock. Six handling agents are present at the airport, several operating VIP lounges inside the main passenger terminal: Sky Valet and Universal Aviation maintain offices there, while Centervol has its own FBO facility of about 2,000 m² inside the perimeter with lounges, crew briefing rooms and a Part-145 hangar. ExecuJet refers to a General Aviation Terminal, and General Aviation Service and United Aviation Services also provide handling.

The coastal location—12.5 km from Girona city centre and close to the Mediterranean—means salt-laden air reaches the apron year-round, accelerating corrosion on exposed metal trim, galley fittings and lavatory fixtures if cabins are not cleaned regularly. Humidity climbs in summer, and sand tracked in from beach destinations embeds quickly into carpet pile and seat rails. We work with your handler to arrange GPU and cabin lighting during the detail, and if the aircraft is parked on stand rather than inside a hangar, we bring dust covers for avionics and mask flight-deck panels before any wet work begins.

How does the coastal climate affect the cabin at LEGE?

Salt aerosol drifts inland from the Costa Brava beaches, settling on window seals, galley countertops and lavatory taps. Left unchecked, it forms a sticky residue that binds dust and attracts moisture, dulling brightwork and leaving streaks on veneer. Leather seat bolsters and armrests absorb the salt film, which then draws moisture from passengers' skin contact, accelerating dye transfer and cracking. Carpets pick up fine sand from shoes—common after owner beach outings—and the grains work into the weave, abrading fibres and clogging vacuum heads during routine cabin prep.

High summer temperatures inside a closed cabin bake these contaminants onto surfaces, making them harder to lift with a quick wipe-down between legs. A full interior detail removes the salt layer with pH-neutral cleaners, extracts embedded sand from carpets, and reconditions leather to restore the protective finish. We pay particular attention to galley drains and lavatory seals, where salt and humidity combine to encourage mould growth, and we polish all metal trim—seat-belt buckles, door handles, cabinet hinges—to strip corrosion before it pits the surface.

What does a full interior detail include on a super-midsize or larger jet?

We begin with leather: every seat, divan, headrest and armrest is cleaned with a pH-balanced product that lifts body oils and grime without stripping the factory topcoat, then conditioned to restore suppleness and UV protection. Stitching and piping are brushed to remove dust, and we inspect seams for early signs of wear. Carpets and fabric upholstery are pre-treated for stains—wine, coffee, ink—then hot-water extracted to pull dirt from the base of the pile; high-traffic areas in the aisle and galley threshold receive a second pass.

Veneer panels, whether gloss or satin, are polished with a microfibre cloth and a cleaner safe for aircraft lacquers; we avoid silicone-based products that leave a film and attract dust. Plastic trim, overhead bins and sidewall panels are wiped down, and any scuff marks are buffed out. The galley is stripped: countertops, cabinet faces, drawer interiors, oven and microwave cavities, coffee-maker drip trays and waste-bin housings are degreased and disinfected, and drains are flushed to clear any build-up. The lavatory receives the same attention—sink, toilet bowl, mirror, cabinet and floor—with particular care around seals and the flush mechanism, which can harbour odour if not cleaned properly.

In the flight deck we vacuum floors and seat rails, wipe yokes and throttles with aviation-safe cleaner, and dust the glareshield and instrument shroud without touching screens or annunciator panels. If disinfection is requested—common before owner flights or during flu season—we fog the cabin with a hospital-grade, aviation-approved agent after all other work is complete, leaving the aircraft sealed for the dwell time before ventilation.

How do you coordinate with the handling agent at Girona-Costa Brava?

Once you confirm the detail, we contact your handler—whether Centervol, ExecuJet, Sky Valet, Universal Aviation or another agent on the field—to arrange apron access, GPU hookup and any hangar use if the aircraft will be inside. The handler issues our team an airside escort or temporary pass, depending on the duration of the work and the airport authority's procedures. If the jet is parked on stand, we ask the handler to position it away from active taxiways to minimise dust and jet blast during the detail, and we request chocks and intake covers if high winds are forecast.

We bring our own equipment—extractor, vacuum, brushes, microfibre cloths, cleaners and conditioners—so the handler does not need to supply materials. The captain or dispatcher signs the tech log entry authorising cabin access, and we note any no-touch zones: flight-deck avionics, emergency equipment panels, or custom cabin features flagged by the completion centre. If the turnaround is tight and the detail must happen between legs, we coordinate start and finish times with the handler's ramp supervisor to ensure the aircraft is released for fuelling and catering on schedule.

How long does a full interior detail take, and when should it be scheduled?

Duration depends on cabin size and condition. A super-midsize cabin in reasonable shape—flown regularly with routine cleaning between legs—takes four to five hours. An ultra-long-range layout with multiple zones, a full galley, an aft lavatory and a shower typically requires eight to ten hours, longer if we are addressing neglected stains, heavy soiling in the galley or mould in lavatory seals. We work faster if the aircraft is inside a lit hangar with climate control; on the ramp at night, even with GPU and cabin lighting, access to water and waste disposal can add time.

Most operators schedule a full interior detail monthly, or before high-visibility flights: owner trips, charter with a new client, pre-purchase inspection or delivery acceptance. If the aircraft has been parked for a week or more at a coastal airport, an interior detail before the next leg prevents salt and humidity damage from setting in. At Girona-Costa Brava, where the airport operates H24 and handlers offer round-the-clock service, we can start work after an evening arrival and have the cabin ready by morning departure, or begin at first light if the crew prefers to supervise the detail in daylight.

What precautions do you take in the flight deck and around avionics?

The flight deck is cleaned with a no-touch protocol for all avionics, screens and circuit-breaker panels. We vacuum the floor, seat cushions and rails, and wipe the yokes, throttle quadrant, pedals and armrests with a cleaner that leaves no residue and will not damage rubberised or leather surfaces. The glareshield and instrument shroud are dusted with a dry microfibre cloth; we do not spray anything directly onto the panel or near the windscreen gaskets, where liquid can seep behind the glass or into avionics bays.

If the captain requests a deeper clean—removing fingerprints from the windscreen interior, for example, or polishing the centre pedestal—we use distilled water or an aviation-approved glass cleaner applied to the cloth, never to the surface. We mask or cover multifunction displays, the FMS keypad and any touchscreen controls before working nearby. Overhead panels, door seals and the cockpit door itself are wiped down, and we check that no cleaning product has dripped into switch guards or annunciator lenses. The result is a tidy, dust-free flight deck that meets the same standard as the cabin, without any risk to the aircraft's systems.