TAG Berlin was Europe’s number one FBO in 2001, according to EBAN readers. The facility picked up top marks in the categories of professionalism, crew facilities and customer service and also picked up a top three position in the area of operations.

So what’s their secret? EBAN spoke to ops manager Sebastian Pingel to learn more. He explained: “You’d probably have to ask the pilots. However from our own perspective, we just try our best to get the pilots and passengers served as best we can.”

Pingel says that their number one placing may also have something to do with the fact that other FBOs aren’t living up to expectations. He said: “It would appear that other FBOs aren’t doing what we are doing. We hear that at other FBOs you have to ask for everything because they haven’t thought about it beforehand. We’re always astonished that others are not like us. It ought to be quite straight-forward, a part of the business.

“Here, we try to get everything done before the pilot asks for it so that it’s present when they arrive. The weather is set up, the NOTAMs, the fuel, whatever is possible will be taken care of.”

Asked about the company’s standards of professionalism, Pingel said: “I’m a licensed dispatcher and all five of us have been working in the aviation business for a long time now.

“We know our business and we think about what we would like to have available to us, if we were

to come into an FBO without knowing anything.”

In terms of crew facilities, Pingel says the company has had the same facility for ten years. “In all honesty,” he said “I don’t know why we’ve come top of this category this year and not in previous years. We have a vip lounge, two pilots lounges, a conference room and all the other usual facilities. We haven’t added anything recently.”

With regard to European FBO standards in general, Pingel said: “There is a big difference between the best and the worst. Pilots have told us that in some places – not in Germany, I might add – they are charged a huge amount for nothing. They don’t get anything without asking, not even weather is set up.

“There is always the danger that people become complacent in their jobs and take the view that they’ll be paid whether they provided a good service or not.

So where does Sebastian Pingel stand on the supposed gulf in standard between European and US FBOs. He told us: “I believe there is a gulf. I like American FBOs. I visited Las Vegas several times last year and it’s totally different. Over here in Europe, we get paid if we do the job and we get paid if we don’t. The Americans are different – if you do a good job, you get paid a bit more.”