Universal Weather and Aviation FBO ground services division Universal Aviation has welcomed six new certified member locations in El Salvador, French Polynesia, Norway, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

“Business aviation volumes remain well above normal for this time of year. While the summer was all about travel to Europe, we're now seeing more missions to Latin America, the Middle East and leisure destinations in Asia-Pacific,” says senior vice president Adolfo Aragon. “These regions will face similar ramp-up, supply chain and staffing challenges we saw in Europe. To minimise the impact on our customers, we're aggressively adding new Universal Aviation Certified members with a strong track record at the locations we identify a need for a higher level of service.”

The new Universal Aviation Certified members include:

- MiltAir Aviation at Ilopango International airport in San Salvador, El Salvador. Miltair has a 20 year track record supporting business aviation and has a strong safety record, always using two wing walkers and an aircraft marshaller. Facilities include a VIP lounge, private parking area and hangar.

- Air Tahiti at Faa'a Tahiti International airport in Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia. Air Tahiti has been providing VIP services for 30+ years and is the only local handler that supports missions to every island in French Polynesia. It can support large aircraft and is the only handler with a VIP Lounge in Bora Bora.

- Sundt Air Executive Handling at Oslo Gardermoen airport in Oslo, Norway. Sundt Air is an IS-BAH Stage III accredited ground handler with nearly 20 years of supporting operations in Oslo.

- Blue Aviation at Doha International airport in Doha, Qatar. Blue Aviation is located near the FBO at OTBD for quick access to CIQ and ground transportation for quick access in and out of the airport. Its available facilities include VIP lounges for passengers and crew, conference rooms, a prayer room and restrooms with showers.

- Gama Aviation at Sharjah International airport in Sharjah, UAE. Gama Aviation is an IS-BAH Stage II accredited ground handler and the only ground handler in the Dubai area to offer private air-side vehicle access to passengers.

- XLR Jet Centres at Birmingham International airport in Birmingham, UK. XLR Jet operates the largest and only full-service FBO in Birmingham, UK, with direct access to the tarmac, private security screening facilities, ample parking, VIP lounges, crew facilities and a 27,000 sq ft heated hangar boasting enough space for the largest business jets.

As Universal Aviation Certified members, these locations have proven their commitment to service excellence by agreeing to Universal's rigorous standards for ground handling quality, training, safety, consistency, customer service and regulatory compliance, including compliance with US and international laws such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the UK Bribery Act. Adherence to these standards and laws will be managed via recurrent training and regular audits.

Universal Aviation Certified members benefit by having access to Universal's training and safety programmes; operational and global traffic insights; and global sales and marketing support, as well as being positioned as Universal's No 1 ground handler for all missions managed by Universal's Trip Support Services.