Spruce It Up: Updating Bizav Interiors Without A Full Makeover

As business aircraft age, cabin upgrades often come into focus. But for many operators, the spruce-up option makes more sense than a total makeover.

“Enormous savings can be realized from a cabin refurbishment instead of an all-new interior,” says Paul Desgrosseilliers, general manager of ExecuJet Haite MRO in Tianjin, China. “A partial refurbishment involves less downtime and fewer approvals, because all-new passenger cabins involve more man-hours, and all materials used in the new cabin need to be approved and certified.” Full or partial cabin refurbishments can be done in conjunction with heavy maintenance, “particularly with inspections that already involve removal and reinstallation of the cabin monuments will see significant savings,” he adds.

Desgrosseilliers explains that the majority of the MRO’s interior projects are refurbishments and system upgrades, citing a recently completed significant amount of panel refurbishment during a 96-month inspection on two aircraft for a new buyer.

Other MROs see interior spruce-ups as a growing opportunity, as well. “Most of our interior work is from current aircraft owners seeking a cabin refresh, and a large majority are asking for partial upgrades, which can be completed during scheduled inspections to avoid lengthy down times,” explains Barry Lambert, executive vice president of charter, maintenance and aircraft sales for Birmingham, Alabama-based Southern Sky Aviation. He notes that Southern Sky Aviation, a fixed-based operator (FBO) with an MRO at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, has observed a definite trend toward partial interior refresh.

The company has, for example, re-dyed leather seat coverings on a CitationJet operated by a major customer, as well as on Southern Sky Aviation’s charter fleet, consisting of three Citation XLSs and one Citation V. “Re-dying will extend the life of the leather seats,” he says, adding that carpet replacement is also a significant refresh item.

At Stevens Aerospace & Defense Systems, partial interior rework is on the lower end of the scale—compared to complete cabin makeovers, according to Denise DeYoung, paint and interior design manager for the Greenville, South Carolina-headquartered MRO and FBO. However, she stresses that partial refurbishments continue to be what she calls “very constant and predictable” work.

“Our two interior shops at Greenville and Nashville handle everything from simple interior squawks like armrest and wood repairs, found during maintenance and avionics events, to installing new carpets or doing seating surface rework,” she explains. “Generally, it is handled within the timeframe for the main work scope, thus not affecting downtime.”

DeYoung reports that refreshing the seat surfaces and foam, as well as a cleanup and change-out of carpeting, are among the more popular and cost-effective solutions, compared to, for example, refurbishing the woodwork.

She also reports that work projects include galley reconfiguration, tables and storage options. However, she adds that customers will, more often than not, look at better connectivity options after partial spruce-ups, and before they look at full interior refurbishments.

“These include systems from Starlink, Gogo Avance and the upcoming LEO K-band, Satcom Direct, Viasat and Airtext providing simple worldwide texting, full communications and moving map capabilities,” she says. “It is also very common for larger cabin aircraft owners to install multiple connectivity systems, providing coverage and operations options across the cost and performance spectrum.”

Cost And Schedule

Partial refurbishments offer a cost-effective solution to “enhance significantly an aircraft’s interior and overall value,” when a customer is unable to commit to the investment or schedule required for a full cabin upgrade, says Dan Lyon, vice president for aftermarket sales at Textron Aviation.

“We have seen more interest in partial interior refurbishments this year because of the often quick return on cost-effective upgrades that require minimal aircraft downtime,” says Lyon. “In a typical cabin refresh, our focus is on enhancing both the aesthetic appeal and functionality of the aircraft's interior, targeting components that are most susceptible to wear and tear or those that can significantly impact the overall passenger experience.”

Lyon explains that the five key areas of partial refurbishment are carpet replacement, cabin seats, crew seats, upper panels and cabinetry.

“The carpet can be replaced to instantly uplift the cabin's appearance with minimal downtime,” he says. “Cabin seat refurbishment can range from re-dying and reconditioning, to fully recovering and restyling, depending on the customer’s needs and the condition of the existing materials.”

Lyon points out that crew seats are often updated with new sheepskin covers, which are not only aesthetically pleasing, but also offer additional comfort and durability.

“Upper panels include reupholstery of window reveals and headliners, and cabinetry includes updates, such as touch-ups and polishing,” he notes.

Other jobs can include mission-specific cabinetry configuration changes and mission-specific interior layout changes.

“Depending on the specific needs of our customers, we can reconfigure cabinetry to better serve operational purposes. This might include enhancements to the food and beverage facilities, such as adding a coffee-maker, or [creating] more efficient, state-of-the-art service areas within the cabin,” Lyon explains. “The overall layout of the cabin can also be altered to better suit the operational requirements and preferences of our customers. This could involve reconfiguring seating arrangements or enhancing other functional areas within the aircraft.”

What Has To Go

Tracey Boesch, Duncan Aviation’s senior completions and modifications sales representative, reports that more of the Lincoln, Nebraska-based MRO’s customers are ordering total cabin makeovers—“unless they are planning to sell the aircraft,” she stresses. “That’s when we see a partial refresh that focuses on cleaning up the interior and making it appealing to the new buyer.”

Typically, she explains, that includes carpet, seats, lower sidewalls or other elements that look the most dated or are high-touch areas. “Customers trying to sell their airplanes want to [target] the biggest eyesores—such as cracks, cloudiness in finish, stained carpets or divans—anything that stands out. It’s all about improving the appearance as much as possible, while keeping in mind the budget.”

Stephanie Kuhn, Duncan Aviation’s senior lead designer, adds that operators of newly acquired pre-owned aircraft often replace the carpet because they are not sure how the previous owners treated it. “If they are walking around in their socks, they want to ensure the carpet is in good condition,” she says. “The same goes for the divan, because that is often the spot where previous owners would sleep, watch movies or lounge, and where we see a lot of spills and stains. It’s hard to sanitize or clean, because the fabric material is typically not something you can just wipe down to clean, so new owners opt to replace or refurbish.”

Ulf Seehusen, design and specification manager at Lufthansa Technik’s VIP Completion Center in Hamburg, reports that a typical cabin spruce-up focuses on both aesthetics and comfort.

“This process often includes refinishing cabinetry to update or restore woodwork and veneers, installing new carpeting for a refreshed look and reupholstering seats with upgraded leather or fabric featuring custom designs. Surface treatments, such as modernizing counter tops and tables, are also part of the spruce-up,” Seehusen says.

Many customers are increasingly prioritizing advanced inflight connectivity solutions to enhance the passenger experience, reflecting the high demand for inflight, reliable, high-speed internet access which supports business needs and personal convenience, he notes.

“For instance, the nice [high-definition] video upgrade retrofit is a prime example of how an older aircraft model is updated to meet current standards,” he says. “This retrofit, approved for the Challenger 300, is implemented to enhance entertainment and cabin management systems. This upgrade includes high-definition screens, touch display controllers at each seat, a native app for portable devices and an interactive 3D moving map.”

He says these changes align the technology on the Challenger 300 with that found in newer models like the Challenger 350.