PIREPs by Thomas

I regularly practiced my approaches at Oehna when I was a PPL student. Very nice, friendly airfield with an asphalt runway and night operations by prior arrangement. Straightforward approach. Small taxiway, parking on grass. Affordable landing fees; AVGAS 100LL and MOGAS available.

The cafe/restaurant "Stolpervogel" is a bit retro, but offers very tasty homemade cake and other dishes—highly recommended and very fairly priced.

The airfield can be reached from Berlin in about an hour by RegionalExpress; the train station is within walking distance.

All in all, highly recommended, especially for training.

Larnaca is the main airport for Cyprus and therefore large and expensive. You'll often have departure delays because you're number 8 after Easyjet, Ryanair, DHL and UPS. Paphos/LCPH is much less busy.

There are some flight school who might be able to help you to navigate the bureaucracy if you insist going to Larnaca, contact Demos Ektoros dektoros@asoc.aero at the Pigeon Aviation School of Cyprus.

Despite being a huge airport, LCPH doesn't have much traffic and is astonishingly GA friendly except the handling pricing.

You can shoot basically as many training approaches as you like without any problems. They apparently don't have or use radar, so you need to go by the approach plates and do reports if doing IFR.

Also for VFR local flights, you always need to file a flight plan and on restricted routes only. As it's an official international airport, there's also security for the GA, which can be bureaucratic.

There are some large handling firms like LGS and Swissport, but you might want to contact Kyriakos, he is the manager of the GA hangar: kyriakos.michael@edtoffshore.com or +35797875820. He also might be able to help with AVGAS. Jet-A1 is very cheap. You might also ask for self-handling.

Handling fees in pricelist are around €150, €100 weekend surcharge, landing fees is around €30.

One of the best and most friendly GA airports when traveling to Berlin - highly recommended. No slot coordination call required anymore! Also customs handling is available for non-schengen Flights, e.g. to the UK. They also have an ATIS since recently, which is nice.

Make sure you exactly study the aeronautical maps to avoid infringements - the airfield is near to a nature reserve to the left and the Class C Airspace of Berlin Brandenburg international to the east. This is also relevant for IFR Departures, make sure you checked the maximum height in the departure routines.

Good customs field for returning back from Canada with a Citation Mustang. Uneventful FBO, Modern Aviation - CAA fuel prices. 1 gal of fuel waives the ramp fee. Overnight fee was $50.

Big annoyance: They wanted to charge me $150 for simply towing me from customs to the FBO. That‘s really bad service, it wouldn‘t have cost them anything, but it costed me a full startup cycle on the engines.

US Customs phone numbers to call at least 1 hr before when coming from Canada:

206 553-1920 206 901 3200 360-332-4413 206-553-7960

If nobody answers the phone or it’s constantly busy like in my case, send them an email: SEA.GA@cbp.dhs.gov ... I got a reply after less than 30 minutes with a permission to land.

Mountain West Aviation - Very friendly people. Easy email communication before landing. Conveniently located to most nice hotels. They close early in low season, so watch the opening times. Recommended.

Great airport to visit Zion National Park! The Airport Manager, LaDell Bistline Sr. is a wonderful, super-friendly and helpful person. They have a crew car which they rent out on first come first serve basis, I paid $70 per night after reserving it via email to airport@tocc.us. Very responsive. Highly recommended!

Atlantic Aviation - I phoned them before and they had all my details, so literally three minutes after exiting the plane I sat in my Uber. Fast and convenient. $35 per night plus $10 tax plus $15 security fee.

Jet Service has nice, friendly and helpful staff, everything‘s super fast, they have a really good coffee machine and plenty of space. Highly recommended.

Canouan is definitely worth visiting, one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean. Huge runway, very friendly staff who are used to handle jets. They helped us with the luggage, good vibe. Communication via E-Mail with Canouan Aviation Services before was flawless, they prepared all the forms for us, refueled while we were away.

Cost is totally acceptable. I stayed 6 days with a Citation Mustang and I paid $465: $245 Handling, $40 dep-tax, $30 customs, $68 landing, $12 parking.

Nice FBO with CAA pricing, but terrible customer service at check out.

Took the lady at the desk forever to enter the data for an invoice, I waited at least 15 minutes. She was totally overwhelmed and filling out stuff in her computer. Even though the price was already calculated, she insisted to enter some invoice address. Seems they don‘t have their processes very well in order. Super annoying. Also no one offered to drive us to the plane.

Still an ok choice for Miami, but expect bad service

Friendly people. Very cheap self serve fuel, refueled a Mustang for a bargain. Overall turnaround time was 27 minutes. Great for a fuel stop.

Beautiful FBO, friendly line people who gave us some tips where to get food. Not cheap, but very good service.

Contour Flight Support - Came there with a Citation Mustang. Nice, friendly and busy FBO. Friendly people, everything worked fine. Perfect to explore Nashville. Would go there again anytime.

Bohlke International Aviation: Best FBO ever.

OMG, these people are the friendliest and most helpful people on earth! Sent emails before and asked for a quick turnaround, everything was already perfectly prepared, including US customs/gendec forms. Totally new building, very friendly people - and they even gave us a goodie bag with stickers, merch and two small rum bottles. Super quick turnaround with a Citation Mustang, CAA fuel rates. If you do a tech stop from or to the US, they are the way to go!

Expensive and not exceptional. Everthing worked, but nothing special about it.

Nice and friendly people, came there with a Citation Mustang, they drove our luggage with a small e cart to the main building. Just make sure you double check the bill, they accidentally put the Citation Mustang in a bigger category and wanted to charge way more than the priced advertised here on ForeFlight. No fees waived for fuel.

Very very friendly and helpful FBO. We pre-ordered a Go rental car without problems (after we had a total disaster at Hertz, never ever rent with Hertz there). A friendly lady gave me the key after hours, refueling was easy, all in all a very pleasant experience! Perfect for visiting Disney World!

Careful: In any case, avoid a rental car with Hertz. They totally messed everything up, were not able to deliver the car (because they realized last minute that some information they need was missing they said - while I was in the air). Only found out about it because I called proactively. Lady on the phone was zero cooperative and had a whatever-I-dont-care-Attitude. Avoid Hertz at any cost.

Million Air - Very friendly and helpful FBO - the lady at the reception desk was unbelievably nice. Good C.A.A. prices - GA friendly. Good choice when visiting Vancouver.

Astonishingly GA-friendly big airport. But: Airport/Landing/NavCanada Fee is a hefty $157 with a Citation Mustang.

Customs via CANPASS was no issue at all, we didn‘t even have to leave the plane, just call them when you land - and when they give you permission, you can go straight to the FBO.

Flightline First - Nice and FBO, CAA pricing. Recommended for New Orleans.

You can‘t go wrong with this scenie airport. Arrived on an RNAV, landed with lots of tail and crosswind on the recommended runway, but still no big deal. Tietown provided and recommended. Super nice staff. Stayed for one night for $40, but definitely worth it.

B. Coleman Aviation - Super friendly lady at the reception. Nice covered welcome parking space so you don’t get wet when it rains. Everything went very smooth with our Citation Mustang, highly recommended when visiting Chicago. 5 stars.

Atlantic Aviation - Really nice service with a Twin Diamond. Gave them a call before arriving so everything was set up. Ramp agent with follow me car waited, helped me with the luggage and drove me back to the main building. No big bureaucracy, after 1-2 minutes we were good to go.

Really good service. $30 parking fee per night, other fees ($65) waived as I took 20 gallons of fuel.

Given the convenient location and the nice service, I can only highly recommend Atlantic.

Banyan Air Service - Friendly people, good coffee. Modern and spacious FBO. We had to wait due to lightning for refueling, but the wait was very comfortable. Recommended!

Nice large airport in the middle of nowhere. Steep but easy landing. Really nice and helpful staff. Jet A1 NO SELF SERVICE, they have to bring in the fuel truck - park on the ramp if you need A1. Attention: The area behind the self serve fuel station (basically behind the Fedex plane) is loose gravel, so don‘t try to taxi around the station.

Nice and relaxed FBO, but watch their opening times. Plan ahead to get an Uber or a Taxi if you arrive after their closing hours, there are not that many.

Memphis Executive Jet Center - Came with a Citation Mustang - super friendly and helpful people. They organized a rental car for me via National and parked it right beside my plane. Perfect airport to spend a few days in Memphis. Highly recommended.

Signature Aviation (formerly Meridian) - Excellent service with a Citation Mustang, CAA fuel, best option for GA. They also made a tire service possible during a two night stay. Recommended!

In the end, a good if not the best choice when visiting Las Vegas. It‘s not a shiny glitzy FBO and the fuel is also not the cheapest, but they‘re very efficient and friendly. Usually fees are waved with fuel purchase. Prepare for a bumpy/windy approach and departure in most cases.

Great approach, late change from IFR to VFR with steep descent. AVGAS quite expensive, but gets you a parking spot on the concrete apron. Two days parking 65€. Be aware of the high trees on short final when landing on 05 (preferred runway). Grass runway in good condition. They have an own harbour and call you a watertaxi which brings you to 70€ directly to your hotel. At departure, Info Radio will get you the IFR clearance which makes the pick-up very easy. The airport is stunningly beautiful and you should not miss a visit - highly recommended.

Good service for a fuel stop from the Caribbean to Florida with a Citation Mustang Jet. I pre-announced our flight, refueling was right there and done during clearing US customs. No big facilities. Make sure you don‘t bring anything to throw away (food) because they charge you extra for that. Even though the fuel is cheap, they charge you a facility fee. If you want to be sure about the cost, ask them before arriving.

These people are super friendly. We had a 20’ turnaround after I sent them an email about our arrival before. Cheap fuel, efficient, good vibes. Complementary small snack and coffee section. Highly recommended.

Went there for a check ride - maybe one of the nicest FBO I‘ve ever been to. They have a cute fully stocked cafe with great coffee, breakfast burritos, etc. Very nice rooms as well. Seamless fuel service. Highly recommended airfield.

Signature Aviation is overpriced, unorganized and annoying. They‘re sitting in a small container, everybody is busy, everything takes forever. Unfortunately you don‘t have much of a choice in Key West, but this is rip-off-pricing combined with the worst customer service ever.

High fees, but worth it. Great location, outstanding service. Limited staff, but they go above and beyond. If you reserve a rental car (e.g., with AVIS; ask ops about options), it will be delivered directly to the aircraft. Important: AOPA membership with crew card halves the fees, from ~€240 to ~€120 for 3 nights + handling. BP Crew Card recommended for refueling.

Nice, friendly club airfield with MOGAS and AVGAS available. Runway 500 m, quite short but entirely straightforward to approach. Open on weekends, otherwise PPR. SIXT will deliver the rental car directly to the airport for an extra fee (station phone: +49 9931 8900776).

Remarks: I flew a C172 to Sylt for an overnight and can only report good things. Entry completely hassle-free via the Sierra route, simple and clear radio comms, then straight to base and final for runway 32, followed by straightforward taxi instructions. Taxied directly to the fuel station, unlocked without fuss and fueled, then parked the aircraft and secured it with ropes to the ground tie-down rings, and done. In total it took at most 20 minutes. Fuel could be paid by card. The next morning I paid 24€ for one night, even got an ice cream, and departed from runway 14 fifteen minutes later. The fuel-and-fish-sandwich voucher apparently no longer exists. Important: 1. Don’t forget a high-visibility vest. 2. Check opening hours beforehand; in my case they opened at 10 LT instead of 0900. 3. SIXT delivers the rental car directly to the GAT if you enter “GAT” as the flight number during the booking. In my case a friendly staff member drove the car over within 15 minutes and I could drive off after one minute. Overall, a clear recommendation from me.