Full Interior Detail at Sion (LSGS)

What changes at Sion?

Sion is daylight-only: aerodrome administration runs 05:00Z to end of daylight in summer (18:00Z latest), 07:00Z to nightfall in winter (19:00Z latest). FBOs staff 07:00–20:00 local in summer, 08:00 to nightfall from October through March. Any arrival or departure outside those windows needs prior permission and services are on request. The single paved runway, 07/25, runs 2,000 metres; a 660-metre grass strip parallels it but is irrelevant to business jets. Elevation is 1582 feet—high enough that density altitude matters on a warm afternoon, but the real constraint is the clock: winter daylight ends early in the valley, and the working day compresses accordingly.

Two handling agents are present at the airport: Signature Flight Support operates from Chemin Lambien 12 with its own hangar and ramp, on-site customs and immigration; Alpinejet Handling (Alpine Jet Services) is at Route des Ronquoz 146 with VIP reception and hangar storage. Both offer hangarage—Signature's hangar is 67,200 square feet, the airport lists capacity for aircraft up to 77,000 kg—which matters when a full interior runs four to ten hours and the weather turns. Customs and immigration are on site during administration hours; airside ramp access is controlled, with 24-hour surveillance and entry via the FBO. If your crew needs an airport ID card, expect a police record extract.

Sion sits 2.5 kilometres from the city centre and serves as the gateway to the Valais resorts. Business aviation peaks in the ski season—December through March—when the field is busiest and FBO hours are shortest. The airport uses an IGS (instrument guidance system, in place since 1991) and RNP procedures; IFR approaches require a dedicated pilot qualification. It was a Swiss Air Force jet base until civil operation began in January 2022; the Air Force retains it as an alternate.

How does a full interior fit between legs at Sion?

The work takes four to ten hours depending on cabin size and condition, so it fits when the aircraft sits overnight or through a day between ski-resort shuttles. We start with a walk-through: you or the handler shows us the aircraft, we note any stains, worn panels, or areas the crew wants extra attention on, and we agree a finish time that leaves margin before the next departure. If the aircraft is on the apron and weather is stable, we work there; if snow or wind is forecast, we ask the handler to tow into the hangar. Most of the time in winter, hangar space is available and both Signature and Alpinejet will accommodate the request if you book it when you file the slot—or in Sion's case, when you confirm the handling, since the field is not slot-coordinated.

Leather cleaning and conditioning cover every seat, divan and side-ledge panel. We use pH-neutral cleaners and conditioners approved for aircraft hides, applied by hand with microfibre cloths and soft brushes for stitching and perforations. Carpets and fabric upholstery are extracted with heated solution and a low-moisture machine; stains get individual treatment—coffee, red wine, de-icing fluid tracked in from the apron. Veneer, metal and plastic trim are polished with the correct product for the material: the idea is to lift fingerprints and restore the factory sheen without leaving residue. Galley and lavatory receive a deep clean—counters, sinks, drains, door seals, waste-flap gaskets—and we finish with disinfection if requested. The flight deck is cleaned with no-touch procedures around avionics, static ports and pitot covers left in place.

We deliver a photo report and a one-line tech log entry. The handler expects us to check in at the FBO, show airside passes, and leave the aircraft exactly as we found it: GPU disconnected or reconnected, door closed and armed if that was the state, no tools or consumables left behind. If the captain or chief pilot wants to inspect before we leave, we wait; if they are off-site, the report goes by email and we coordinate departure with the handler.

What does the full interior include?

Every surface a passenger or crew member touches, and most they simply see. Leather seats and divans are cleaned to lift body oils, dirt and any staining, then conditioned to restore suppleness and prevent cracking—important in the dry cabin air of a cold-soaked aircraft that has just flown in from a lower altitude. We work section by section: backrest, cushion, armrests, headrest, side panels, stitching and piping. Perforated leather gets a soft brush to clear dust from the holes without pushing it deeper.

Carpets and fabric upholstery—seat inserts, curtains, sidewall panels—are extracted with heated cleaning solution and a machine that pulls the moisture back out, so dry time is short. Stains are pre-treated: we carry separate agents for protein (food, blood), tannin (coffee, wine), oil (cosmetics, galley spills) and glycol (de-icing fluid tracked in). Veneer trim is polished with a product that matches the finish—high-gloss, satin or matte—and metal brightwork (seat frames, galley rails, lavatory fixtures) is polished and protected. Plastic trim and sidewall panels are wiped with an anti-static cleaner that repels dust.

The galley receives a full wipe-down: counters, cabinet fronts, oven and microwave interiors, sink and taps, drains cleared, seals checked for mould. The lavatory is stripped and cleaned—sink, toilet bowl, flush mechanism, mirror, vanity, waste flap and gasket, floor and walls. We finish with a disinfectant rated for aircraft use if the operator requests it. The flight deck is cleaned carefully: seats, yoke, throttles, switch panels and screens wiped with aviation-safe cleaner, no moisture near avionics bays, no movement of circuit breakers or covers.

Why does a full interior take four to ten hours?

Cabin size is the first variable: a super-midsize with eight seats, a galley and a single lavatory will be finished in four to five hours if the interior is in good condition. An ultra-long-range aircraft with fourteen seats, two lavatories, a full galley and a crew rest area pushes toward eight hours. A neglected cabin—heavy staining, ground-in dirt in the carpet, galley drains clogged, veneer dulled by months of fingerprints—adds time regardless of size, because every surface needs extra passes and some stains require dwell time for the treatment to work before extraction.

Leather conditioning cannot be rushed: the product must be worked into the hide and the excess buffed off, and if you apply too much or buff too soon, you leave a sticky residue that attracts dirt. Carpet extraction is a two-step process—apply solution, extract moisture—and high-traffic areas (the aisle, the galley threshold, the lavatory entrance) often need a second pass. Veneer polish and brightwork require hand work; there is no mechanical shortcut that does not risk scratching the finish. The galley and lavatory are time sinks because of the detail: every drawer, every seal, every drain.

We estimate conservatively and tell the handler and the captain the longest likely duration when we start. If we finish early, everyone is pleased; if we run to the estimate, no one is surprised. At Sion, where daylight and FBO hours are both constrained in winter, we prefer to start early and finish with margin rather than chase the clock at nightfall.

What does the handler expect from a third-party detailing crew at Sion?

Professionalism and no surprises. We check in at the FBO when we arrive, show airside passes (airport ID cards require a police record extract and 24-hour ramp surveillance is in place), and confirm with the handler which stand or hangar bay the aircraft is in and when we will finish. If we need GPU power, we ask; if we need the aircraft towed into the hangar, we request it at check-in so the handler can schedule the tug. We do not move the aircraft, open panels, or touch anything outside the cabin without explicit coordination. If we find something—a loose seat fitting, a stain that will not lift, a drain that smells of blockage—we tell the handler and the captain immediately; we do not attempt a repair.

We bring our own consumables—cleaners, conditioners, polishes, microfibre cloths, brushes, extraction machine, vacuum, waste bags—and we remove all waste when we leave. We do not use the aircraft's water system or lavatory, and we do not leave equipment or chemicals on board. If the aircraft was connected to GPU when we started, we leave it connected; if the door was closed and armed, we close and arm it when we finish. The handler expects a clean departure: no cords across the apron, no water spills, no cleaning solution on the ramp that could freeze overnight in winter.

We deliver a photo report—before and after images of the cabin, close-ups of any areas that needed extra work—and a one-line tech log entry if the captain requests it. If the captain or chief pilot wants to inspect before we leave, we wait on the apron or in the hangar; if they are off-site, we send the report by email and coordinate with the handler for their departure clearance. At a daylight-only field like Sion, timing is everything: we finish when we said we would, and we do not hold up the next leg.

When should an operator schedule a full interior at Sion?

Monthly, if the aircraft is in regular charter or high-utilisation owner flying, or before any high-visibility flight—a board meeting, a client trip, a re-positioning to a show or event where the cabin will be seen by people who are not regular passengers. Sion is a natural scheduling point during the ski season: the aircraft flies in from a European hub, sits overnight or through a day between resort shuttles, and departs the next morning or evening with a refreshed cabin. The work fits the rhythm of winter operations in the Valais, when aircraft cycle through every few days and the cabin accumulates wear quickly—salt and moisture tracked in from the apron, galley use, lavatory use, passengers in ski boots and heavy coats.

If the aircraft is based at Sion for a week or more during the season, a mid-stay full interior keeps the cabin ahead of the dirt. If the aircraft is transiting once and will not return for months, the detail is worth doing before departure so the cabin is correct when the owner or client boards at the next destination. We work around the flight department's schedule: if you have a morning departure, we start the afternoon before and finish by evening; if you have an evening departure, we start at first light and finish by midday. At Sion, where FBO hours shorten in winter and daylight is the hard limit, early communication with the handler ensures the work fits the window and the aircraft is ready when you need it.