Global flight support company Palm Aviation of Dubai has opened an office in Belgium. “We now have a presence in Belgium in order to support existing clients in Europe, with intense focus on potential new clients to add to our portfolio,” says cco Mohammad Saideh. “Our clients deserve to have our physical presence closer to them, to increase the frequency of our visits, and always be there for them, to ensure that we meet their expectations.”

Palm Aviation has long-standing relationships with European operators including Aero-Dienst, Amira Air, PrivatAir, Premium Jet, IJM, Global Jet Concept, MJet, TAG Aviation and Dassault Falcon Service.

“Despite the integrated operations of these companies, they prefer delegating the management of certain tasks such as fuelling, FBO reservations and authorisations for landings and take-offs,” Saideh continues. “Palm Fuel helps to guarantee customers a fixed price for fuel over a given period, even when prices rise. We also work closely with numerous FBOs, guaranteeing each customer a personalised service regardless of the arrival or departure point. Our continuous improvement team has developed a concept known as International Trip Planning, a centre offering a complete framework for flight preparation including reports on flight restrictions or alternatives in the event of problems, and precise weather updates for all planned routes.”

Last minute requests for flight authorisations remain one of the most obscure matters to resolve for a large number of operators, and this is a further focus for Palm. Each customer has a single point of contact with the company, and it has a multilingual team available 24/7.

Saideh is concerned with Palm's global operations: he is active in the Middle East but also in Europe. “Europe remains a major economic challenge for us. It still represents the second largest sector of activity for business aviation after North America,” he concludes.