FBO Etiquette

Fair enough. Just let the crew know you're too busy. I'm sure they are more than happy to go to another FBO.
 
It used to annoy me, and as time goes on it bothers me less. I will usually explain to them the delay and we will get the them as soon as possible, giving them a brief description of my game plan to handle the situation. I have found that if you can explain in a pleasant manner, and figure out their intentions, it makes everyone happy. The bottom line is that you must realize it will happen almost everyday you work the line. Once you realize that, it is always in the back of your mind and it lets you form a mental game plan for pop up traffic. That always leaves you and out so your ramp doesn't get messy.

The bottom, bottom line...without them you wouldn't have a pay check.
 
What really chaps my hyde is when I call a FBO 1 hour before our departure to an FBO 3 hours away, inform them that we'll need a quick turn on xxxx pounds of fuel positive prist on a quick turn upon arrival. Then give the courtesy 15 min out reminder, only to arrive and wait 30 minutes for a fuel truck to pull up. (One other aircraft on the ramp and not being serviced) All the while the boss man had arrived early and heard my courtesy call and witnessed the whole thing.

Not meant to be a poke at line service, really only happens at one FBO. Unfortunately it occurs way too often, and they are the only FBO on the field.
 
SoonerAv8r said:
What really chaps my hyde is when I call a FBO 1 hour before our departure to an FBO 3 hours away, inform them that we'll need a quick turn on xxxx pounds of fuel positive prist on a quick turn upon arrival. Then give the courtesy 15 min out reminder, only to arrive and wait 30 minutes for a fuel truck to pull up. (One other aircraft on the ramp and not being serviced) All the while the boss man had arrived early and heard my courtesy call and witnessed the whole thing.

Not meant to be a poke at line service, really only happens at one FBO. Unfortunately it occurs way too often, and they are the only FBO on the field.
Click to expand...
OK, that just sucks! If you call in 15 minutes prior I will have a truck standing by. Usually I can a truck on a plane and pumping in about one minute after engines shutdown. We had a G-5 come through the other day and had it in and out on less than 30 minutes, and they took over 3500 gallons of fuel.
 
ASpilot2be said:
I dont think that is the case at all. I feel that if a plane drops in unannounced and we are busy, we can not provide the best service available. If you call we can have a plan and provide much better service.

I would rather be prepared for the plane and give them great service. I personally feel like I failed if I cant do that. That may or may not be where the OP is coming from, but thats how I feel.
Click to expand...
Exactly where I am coming from ASpilot2be! Well explained! I guess I didn't mention the frustration of wanting to provide better service and the folks that are reading my thread are getting the wrong message of just me coming off as complaining about doing my job. Which is not the case at all!
 
MikeD said:
In the military we call it a PPR....or Prior Permission Required. Its a number thats not really "permission", except at some bases, but is more a courtesy of informing the base ops so they can expect you. We carry this same thing over to civilian fields as a matter of course. To me, bringing one of my planes or helos into an FBO isn't really the same as driving into the local Exxon/Shell/Chevron station, it's a little more complicated than that ESPECIALLY if Im expecting full service or need any other kind of special servicing that takes some time to prepare, such as fleet service, GPU, towing, and especially hangaring. Now, if Im bringing in a small plane and am going to taxi over to self-serve pumps and don't need anything else, I may or may not bother IF Im already familiar with that FBO and how it operates. But if Im unfamiliar, even if Im planning on self-serve gas and go, I always call ahead to see if there's any special instructions of any kind.

Yes, the FBO is a service provider. However, it doesn't hurt when the customer can help them help you better and more efficiently.
Click to expand...

MikeD you are also spot on! However in fairness to the private sector I was also in the military and we were taught ORM(Operational Risk Management) and the 5 P's (Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance) which I apply to everyday life situations! Thanks for your opinion!
 
MrAviator11 said:
One of my biggest problems as a line guy is pilots that show up to an FBO without calling ahead or making a reservation.
Click to expand...
I worked line service for 6 years (on both GA and airline ramps) and 20 years using various FBOs. I don't think I have ever heard it referred to as a reservation. All said, I "try" to call ahead. When I worked line service, I don't think I was really concerned if they called ahead or not. It's not like I could do much until they landed anyway.

Flashing forward to today....Sometimes, through the mysteries of radio, we can't get anyone on the ground. When we get closer, we are usually preoccupied with other required duties. Most FBOs now have a flight tracker and know hours ahead of time that we are coming, thus taking away the "surprise" aspect.

I'll flip the coin for a minute for some of our "concerns."

When a crew shows up in the morning and starts preflighting, don't rush out with the coffee, ice and papers. Give us a few minutes to get the covers pulled and our bags stowed.
When a plane comes in and opens the door....Don't blurt our "How much gas are you going to buy?" A friendly greeting will get you a lot further than a pushy sales pitch.
Be nice to pilots of "small" planes, you never know what they "really" fly.

I recently came into a local airport in a SE plane. Which I parked by myself while the linemen watched. One lineman ran up and said, you need to move this, you can't be here.....we have "BIG" planes coming in. He then turned and stormed off. He never said hello, asked how long I was staying, or if I needed anything. The GM and others got an ear full the next morning when I informed them that I fly one of those "BIG" airplanes that they were lusting after, and he need not worry about me bothering to buying fuel from them in the future.
 
From the perspective of being on the ground, if you want the best service for your passenger, call the FBO on your intentions. I work at a very busy FBO, and while we appreciate all business, and try to be prepared for everything and anyone, a quick call helps us to better prepare for an aircraft's needs. If you are a quick-turn, we want to position you so that you can leave quickly. If your passenger has valet a car, we want to have that car pulled up. If there is luggage, we want to greet you with a luggage cart. If you are on a super QT and need fuel, we want to make arrangements so that we have a fuel truck standing by when you arrive. While we certainly welcome no-calls, if you want the best of service or even want to make it easy on the FBO and yourself, call in.
 
Boris Badenov said:
"Oh, hi! Yeah, we're a quickturn! Why wasn't there anyone here to park us, anyway!? Where's the red carpet? Top the wings, 300 in the trunk, positive prist! Oh, yeah, ice, coffee, papers, and a GPU, too! I'll just run in and pay and we'll be out of here!" :D
Click to expand...

Where I worked we called that "The Beechjet Treatment"

After a while our regulars would just ask for it ;)



Sent from 1865 by telegraph....
 
Number one job is to get the passengers away from the airplane. I went into Swift at PHX yesterday and the line guy ‘s number one job was to put cones around the airplane.
 
Since this thread got revived I too will add to it.... I think that not calling ahead greatly depends on where you're going. If you are flying into an FBO/Airport that you know is going to be busy and don't call ahead then don't get mad when we're scrambling to park you and you end up at the end of the ramp in 20 degree weather. Also please don't get mad when we ask questions. You scare gys away from making sure they are doing the right thing. If you have a particular way you like your plane grounded or there is a special trick you like to use when fueling... let is know. We service a bunch of diiferent types and even when a plane is the same type it frequently has differences. So don't get upset when someone grounds to the nose gear and you wanted it under the wing when you said nothing about it....

To Dugie.... I believe you have what we like to call "Learjet Syndrome." Remember... most of the line guys, especially where I work are Pilots. Just because you fly a "jet" does not mean you are better or even smarter than the guys servicing your airplane. Everyone I work with has four year degrees and some form of flight time a few are even 5000 hour CFI's.

As I remarked in another thread... If you fly a Beechjunk please tip your line guys. Especially if getting a lav service.... there is always a 20% chance of getting pooed on at no fault of your own. Thats where that plane differs from others. Anything else it's your fault. Not to mentiong that thing is a fueling nightmare.
 
Corporate Pilot said:
Number one job is to get the passengers away from the airplane. I went into Swift at PHX yesterday and the line guy ‘s number one job was to put cones around the airplane.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately this type of BS is why the job is declining. A lot of micromanaging bs... it's stupid.
 
Wow! Haven't been on here in a minute....Didn't think this thread would come back to life specially after brusing some pilot feelings...lol CMAC88- I couldn't agree with you more. I too have worked with guys that have four year degrees in Aviation and all the pilots ratings and work as line guys because of the love of aviation. So when you have those dbag pilots that look down on a line guy because he is hauling the poop off the plane its a shame. I blame alot of pilots flaws on FBO's. Why? Because FBO's feel like they need to cater to pilots because there is the belief that pilots have pull when it comes to what FBO they go to. Even tho there is true in that alot of the times paxs get to pick what FBO they go too. Pilots are just employees just like the line guys yet they get treated like royalty at FBO's! They don't pay the fuel bill, the ramp fee, the catering, or the hangar, but they get the same treatment as if they were the owners because they are the one's presenting the company credit card, and at the end of the day all the FBO's care about is making money. I'm not saying all pilots are dbags, obviously that is not the case, but pilots can get condesending, rude, and very entitled at times. Either way I'm not losing sleep over it, but it's fun to reality check those kinds of pilots every now and then.

I use to work at KSRQ.
 
I will throw in an alternate perspective. Although, I now work for a company with a dedicated Flight Coordination department that pre-arranges everything, for years I flew single pilot 135 in a piston twin. We tried to call before departure, but it did not always fit into the time frame. Usually becaue we were taking off before many small FBO's were open. When I could remember to call the FBO over the unicom/ARINC, I would, but the time that in range of the FBO was the one time in the whole flight when I was actually busy. This was the time that I was getting ATIS, setting up and reviewing the approach etc. Switching over to Unicom frequency at this point was never one of my higher priorities. Of course, I rarely needed quick turn services, and if I did I found some way to call in. :)
 
My biggest pet peeve.... Planes that don't make a reservation and call in 5 minutes out, fuel truck standing by for a top off, coffee, ice, newspaper, GPU, and QT. Then the plane sits on the ground for an hour with the GPU running and sending power to an empty aircraft....cough cough, Piggago drivers....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top