Cabin Disinfection at Pantelleria (LICG)

What does cabin disinfection cover at Pantelleria?

The scope is every surface a passenger or crew member touches, plus the entire cabin air path. Seats, armrests, tables, latches, switches, galley counters, lavatory fixtures, door handles, seatback pockets, air vents and gaspers all receive contact time with aviation-approved disinfectant. We follow manufacturer guidelines for dwell time, then wipe or rinse as the chemistry requires.

Odour and smoke neutralisation is included. If the cabin has absorbed galley smells, tobacco residue from a previous owner, or biological odours, we apply a separate neutralising agent after disinfection. You receive a certificate of treatment with product batch numbers and application times, plus a full photo report showing pre-work condition and post-treatment surfaces. The documentation goes into your tech log or stays with the flight-department records, whichever you prefer.

How do we coordinate disinfection with the handler at Pantelleria?

Handling agents present at the airport expect advance notice for any third-party technical or cleaning crew. We send our airside-pass details and estimated arrival time at least twenty-four hours before the aircraft lands, along with confirmation that we carry liability insurance and our own equipment. The handler arranges escort if required and confirms the stand assignment so we know where to meet your aircraft.

On the day, we check in at the general-aviation terminal—run by the same company that provides ground assistance—collect the escort, and move airside as soon as the aircraft is chocked and the GPU is connected. If you're on a tight turnaround, we ask the handler to keep the air-conditioning cart in place so the cabin stays cool while we work. Communication runs through the handler's operations desk; they expect a call when we finish so they can verify the stand is clear and update their movement log.

What changes at Pantelleria that affects cabin disinfection?

Pantelleria sits at 635 feet elevation on a volcanic island south-west of Sicily. The single runway, 07/25, is 1 735 metres long, which accommodates the MTOW of most super-midsize and large-cabin jets but leaves little margin for long-range heavies in high summer temperatures. Most business-aviation movements are seasonal—May through September—tied to the resort calendar and villa charters.

An Italian Air Force detachment shares the field, so military movements appear on the same frequency and occasionally hold the apron. The historic underground Nervi hangar remains on the airfield but is not available for transient general aviation; all disinfection work happens on the open stand. Airport operations passed to Enac Servizi in December 2025, though the same ground-handling company continues all ramp services, so crew procedures have not changed. There is no curfew in the data we hold, but the island's small population and single runway mean night operations are uncommon outside medical or government flights.

Do you work recurring contracts or one-off calls at Pantelleria?

Both. Recurring work suits charter operators and management companies that base an aircraft on the island for the season or run a weekly rotation through Pantelleria. We agree a standing disinfection interval—after every charter leg, every third flight, or once a week—and the handler knows to expect us. You get a volume discount, predictable invoicing, and a dedicated technician who learns your cabin layout and your preferred timing.

One-off calls are just as common. A transient crew radios ahead during the descent, the handler passes the request to us, and we arrive within two hours if we're already on the island or on the next ferry crossing if we're staging from Sicily. AOG disinfection—cabin contamination, biological spill, smoke event—gets priority. We carry stock of every chemistry we use, so lead time is about logistics, not supply.

What documentation and photo reporting do we receive?

Every disinfection job closes with a certificate of treatment that lists the products used, their batch numbers, application and dwell times, and the name of the technician who performed the work. The certificate is printed on site and handed to the captain or left in the tech log if the crew has stepped away. It satisfies insurance underwriters, health authorities, and your own SMS audit trail.

The photo report is delivered by email within one hour of leaving the aircraft. It includes wide shots of the cabin before we start, close-ups of high-touch areas during treatment, and final images showing treated surfaces dry and ready for boarding. If you've had an odour complaint or a spill, we photograph the affected area before and after neutralisation. The timestamps are burned into the image metadata, and the file names reference your registration and the date. Flight departments that run multiple aircraft ask us to tag the photos by tail number so their records stay organised.

How long does cabin disinfection take, and can it fit a short turnaround?

A typical disinfection on a super-midsize cabin—eight to ten seats, one lavatory, small galley—takes one hour if there are no odour issues and the cabin is tidy. A long-range aircraft with fourteen seats, two lavatories, a full galley and a separate crew rest adds thirty minutes. If we're also neutralising smoke or biological odours, add another thirty minutes for the chemistry to work and the cabin to ventilate.

Short turnarounds are possible if the handler can give us immediate access. We've completed disinfection on a midsize jet in fifty minutes when the crew called ahead and the GPU was already connected. The limiting factor is dwell time: the disinfectant must stay wet on the surface for the label-specified contact period, usually five to ten minutes, before we wipe it off. We can't shorten that without compromising efficacy. If your slot is tight, tell the handler when you file the flight plan, and we'll stage our kit at the stand before you land.