Three leading Swiss FBOs enjoyed frenetic levels of activity during last week's World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

ExecuJet Aviation Group’s FBO at Zürich Airport celebrated a record 400 aircraft movements for VIP passengers travelling to and from the event, including a high proportion of long-range business jets.

The company once again had an exclusive agreement with Dübendorf Airport (LSMD) - a military facility located 5nm north of Zürich Airport - to facilitate additional capacity requirements. For the first time, ExecuJet was able to offer its full range of FBO services at Dübendorf, in addition to the customary aircraft parking facility, including customs clearance and border control conducted by Swiss authorities. Twenty-two aircraft flew to Dübendorf directly and were handled there by ExecuJet.

Basil Gamper, ExecuJet’s Zürich FBO Manager, says: “The World Economic Forum is an extremely important and busy time of year for our Zürich FBO. We handled a record number of flights for visiting VIPs, including heads of state from Europe and other regions. In total, ExecuJet sold almost 600,000 litres of fuel at Zurich and Dübendorf combined - a company record for the event.”

Jet Aviation's Zurich FBO handled 582 movements and 1,485 passengers in addition to organizing return helicopter services from Zurich to Davos on request. The company brought in additional staff from its Dubai, Basel and Berlin facilities to assist with customized passenger and crew handling in the days leading up to and following the Assembly and also added a number of luxury vehicles to its existing fleet to accommodate ground transportation requirements for the surge of WEF passengers.

Photo courtesy JetAviation

As the only FBO at Zurich airport providing Jet A-1 and Avgas 100LL, the company further supported WEF fuel sales of more than 890,979 liters.

“I was very proud to see how our international team of handling professionals worked together to ensure a premium customer experience. They truly demonstrated a consistent commitment to 5-star customer service throughout our network,” said Monica Beusch, general manager of Jet Aviation Zurich and head of FBO Services in EMEA and Asia.

Air Service Basel’s FBO at the EuroAirport Basel reported an "extraordinary"  number of aircraft movements during the event, with a high majority being mid- and large-size business jets using ASB’s state-of-the-art hangar facilities for long term parking.

“Our FBO handled a peak number of flights for visiting VIPs from all over the world, including many European and Overseas’ corporate and government flight departments”, says Air Service Basel’s CEO Claudio Lasagni, “and I am pleased that our team provided an excellent and discreet handling service to all our guests.”