Switzerland's Speedwings, which operates two 560s and a 5 Ultra as well as other Citation models, is planning to build maintenance facilities at Payerne. Jean-Yves Guillet, project manager, says: "The main maintenance problem, especially for small aeroplanes, is availability and flexibility."

Guillet explains "This is one of the main reasons that Speedwings would like to build maintenance facilities in Payerne. It would provide a very appropriate way to maintain our own fleet and get more flexibility in relation to maintenance and dispatch reliability."

In most cases, he says, the company is happy with the availability of spare parts, as it currently outsources obtaining them along with the maintenance. However Guillet would like to see two improvements in support from the manufacturer.

"The switchover of computerised maintenance from Cesscom to Camp is in progress and it would also be desirable to receive the service bulletins by electronic mail," he points out.

Guillet says the aircraft are very powerful when taking off in short airfields and have the capability to reach high cruising level in a short time period at a less congested level resulted in time gains. But the worst aspects are the lack of APU for cabin air conditioning. Payerne, though presently a military airport, is being opened to civilian aircraft.

Speedwings has received Federal Office for Civil Aviation (FOCA) permission to build a handling infrastructure, a maintenance work-shop and hangarage facilities and details are being finalised to enable the building works to start.

"The project owner is still working on security and the civilian/military procedures in order to hopefully get final approval by the end of 2009," says Guillet. "Payerne is well located in central Switzerland and has the advantage of an already good existing infrastructure."

Triple Alpha GmbH's Hans Pfeiffer points out that maintenance gets expensive with ageing aircraft but says the best aspect is the Citation V's multi-role capability. "I am very satisfied with the operating capability. It can take eight passengers and deal with long range and short fields."

Pfeiffer is very satisfied with dispatch reliability, saying it is "bulletproof in all aspects" and operating capability and satisfied with the maintenance but would like to see increases in zero fuel and maximum take-off weights.

Cmdr Werner Kohler of Jetcircle says the 560 Ultra burns too much fuel but he is satisfied with the maintenance support, dispatch reliability and operating capability.