1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148 
GROUND-HANDLING KNOW-HOW
Page 43
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
To get a better idea of the range of vehicles operated airside at Heathrow, we spoke to one of the biggest ground-handling equipment (GHE) players: VT Support Services. The company is in its sixth year of a 10-year full-risk service contract with British Airways, covering Manchester, Gatwick and Heathrow.
The flagship of GHE's capabilities is Heathrow's T5, where VT has delivered E40m-worth of ground-handling equipment for British Airways over the past 18 months, The fleet encompasses 3,500 assets with everything from LCVs to 70-tonne Douglas aircraft tow tugs and more than 3,000 cargo dollies.
"The sheer scale and scope of T5 presented Viand British Airways with significant changes in how to provide support to the airline," says Steve Cobbold, VT Airside Solutions head of engineering.
"With a campus that is 260 hectares roughly the size of Hyde Park and situated on a geographical area wlth a topography that includes ramps and tunnels with a 1:19(5.3%) gradient, we have had to engineer unique, and, in some cases, ground-breaking solutions never seen before."
For example, telematic equipment fitted to all aircraft tractors gives remote access to a range of engine data, such as oil temperature and pressure. Under the service agreement, VThas a 15-minute window for repair or replacement if a piece of equipment needed for a scheduled departure break down.
"As the airline industry changes, the new equipment procurement programme has had to adapt so as to not only meet ramp SLAs (service level agreements), but to ensure environmental rules such as the Low Emission Zone are met. And we are conscious of the goal to reduce emissions at airports. With the assistance of VT Airside Solutions, BA recently achieved the highest ranking of a five-tier assessment structure from bronze to diamond, in the BM Heathrow Clean Vehicles Programme monitoring everything from vehicle maintenance to cost-effective fleet optimisation and use of telematics that are independently reviewed by a transport consultant."
The Clean Vehicles Programme aims to reduce transport costs including fuel and maintenance while reducing the environmental impact of vehicle fleets.