The ‘Elephant e-BETA’ is powered by electricity, supporting the airport’s mission to become CO2 neutral
The de-icing and aircraft towing company at Munich Airport – EFM – has inaugurated the electric ‘Elephant e-BETA’, a vehicle which was developed by Danish manufacturer, Vestergaard.
According to the firm, the new de-icing vehicle is the first one that’s powered by electricity. The spray arms and nozzles situated on the machine are able to carry out de-icing operations silently and efficiently.
Powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, the vehicle can de-ice around ten to 15 aircraft and can perform around 2-3 hours of work before being recharged.
The vehicle travels to the required areas using its diesel engine, however on the site the engine is switched off to allow for an all-electric de-icing process.
Compared with other de-icing equipment, the elephant is able to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 87%.
The facility says new equipment is in line with Munich Airport’s climate strategy, through which it hopes to operate on a CO2 neutral basis by 2030.
