FEBRUARY 2011 | ISSUE 1 | VOLUME 16

Leader of
the pack:
Captaining Plane Handling’s
winning team

EU Directive revisions:
Will handlers benefit?
RFID update:
Reading the signals
Around the world:
Handling Africa
and the
Middle East

HI-LIFTS VIENNA CONFERENCE REVIEW ISAGO

©2011 ASIG
 FEBRUARY 2011 | ISSUE 1 | VOLUME 16
Contents

Leader of
the pack: 2 GHI NEWS
Captaining Plane Handling’s
winning team
Signature signs in France and
EU Directive revisions:
Will handlers benefit?
RFID update:
IAHA gains new members
Reading the signals
Around the world:

4 SAFETY STRATEGIES
Handling Africa
and the
Middle East ➤ PAGE 26
Viennese highlights
We ask whether a uniform
HI-LIFTS VIENNA CONFERENCE REVIEW ISAGO
approach in the Far East is
Front cover courtesy of Plane Handling workable
PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Tim Ornellas 6 LEGAL COLUMN
tel: +44 1892 839209
e-mail: tim@groundhandling.com Some thoughts on the realities PAGE 32 ➤
Hotter handling
EXECUTIVE EDITOR of bankruptcy
Alwyn Brice
tel: +44 1892 839212
e-mail: alwyn@groundhandling.com 7 CONTRACT NEWS
DESIGNER
Jason Taylor
e-mail: jason@liquorice-creative.co.uk 8 IT NEWS
www.theliquoricegroup.co.uk
INTERNATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR
Self-service baggage solutions
Alison Woolley
tel: +44 1892 839208
and ramp communications ➤ PAGE 44
e-mail: alison@groundhandling.com Behind the scenes
CIRCULATION 9 CARGO NEWS
Clare Norfolk
tel: +44 1892 839206 32 WORLD ANALYSIS
e-mail: clare@groundhandling.com 12 ISAGO UPDATE
Middle East and Africa examined
CONFERENCE DIRECTOR
Jean Ang
How Menzies went through the
tel: +44 1892 839203
e-mail: jean@groundhandling.com
audit process 38 A DEFINITE MAYBE?
CONFERENCE CO-ORDINATOR Highlights from the
& PRODUCTION 13 ASIAN GROUND
Sherilee Clinch amendments and proposals
tel: +44 1892 839214 HANDLING
e-mail: sherilee@groundhandling.com relating to the 1996 EU Directive
PRODUCTION
CONFERENCE 2011
Glynis Bristow
tel: +44 1892 839211
The final programme: have you 43 PRM & CATERING NEWS
e-mail: glynis@groundhandling.com booked your place?
ACCOUNTS 44 FACTORY TOUR
Emma Smith
tel: +44 1892 839207 19 SAFETY TRAINING AIDS Behind the scenes at Austrian
e-mail: emma@groundhandling.com
CONTRIBUTORS
A look at what’s currently specialist Hitzinger
Anneris Pena available
Please note our contact details for all correspondence: 47 HI-LIFTS
Ground Handling International, The Stables, Willow Lane,
Paddock Wood, Kent TN12 6PF, United Kingdom.
21 PEOPLE & APPOINTMENTS How has the market performed
Telephone: +44 (0) 1892 839200
Facsimile: +44 (0) 1892 839210 in 2010?
E-mail: admin@groundhandling.com 22 RFID PROGRESS
www.groundhandling.com
ISSN number: 1364 – 8330 A report from France 49 TOILET & WATER UNITS
Ground Handling International is published in February,
Where stainless steel is king
April, June, August, October & December.
Subscription rate per year applies to UK and overseas: 24 INDUSTRY INTERVIEW
Qualifying subscription: £63 or €73 or US$108
Non-industry subscription: £175 or €208 or US$299 With Plane Handling’s 52 RAMP SAFETY BRIEFING
Rob Williams Sad news for the start of
the year
26 VIENNESE REVIEW
Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information
contained in this publication is correct, the publisher
makes no warranty, express or implied, as to the nature
Looking back at the 2010 GHI 53 RAMP EQUIPMENT NEWS
or accuracy of such material to the extent permitted by
application law.
conference in Austria New in the marketplace
© 2011 The Airports Publishing Network Ltd.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or 30 GHI/ IGHC GOLF DAY 56 RAMP FORUM
used in any form or by any means, without specific prior
permission from the publisher. Play in Malaysia this year! Stunning news and gunning views
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 1

French flourish at Signature
Following the launch of
Signature Flight Support’s ground
handling co-ordination service in
Germany in 2010, Signature is now
offering this value-added service
to its customers in France.
Signature Flight Support
currently has the ability to assist
its operators in co-ordinating
additional flight support services
such as slot co-ordination,
NOTAMs, weather and pilot
briefings, ground handling, fuel,
catering, hotels and limousine hire
at airports throughout France.
Flight departments operating in
France need only make one call
to Signature to implement the
process. These services are offered
New blood for IAHA
At the recent Ground Handling
International conference in
Vienna, attendees heard of the
latest changes within IAHA. Both
John Willis and Luc Meurrens
have stood down and the board
duly selected Martin Meyer
(formerly of Swissport) as its
FOD conference’s global
outlook is welcomed
Aviation industry leaders from
across the globe met at Heathrow
last November to discuss best
practice and innovation in
FOD detection and preventive
measures.
It is estimated that débris on the
airfield costs the global aviation
industry some US$6bn each year,
quite apart from the continuous
safety risk that it poses. Heathrow
is at the forefront of innovation
when it comes to FOD detection
and in association with QinetiQ,
the airport decided to host the
conference to explore how the
industry can best work together to
exploit technological advances and
develop new methods to improve
FOD management.
As a leader in FOD management,
Heathrow has embraced the use
2 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
N E W S
in addition to Signature’s French
FBO locations in Paris Le Bourget,
Toulon and Nice.
Through agreements with a
network of existing fixed based
operators and airport authorities
new part-time Secretary General.
The board has further decided
to close its legal domicile in
Belgium and formally set up
IAHA in Switzerland. The General
Assembly also elected five
new board members. These are
Kobus Van Niekerk of BIDAir;
of technology. The installation
of QinetiQ’s Tarsier radar system
in 2008, for example, coupled
to the later addition of infra-red
camera technology, has been a
successful and sophisticated aid
to the regular human inspections
the AOSU team carries out several
times daily. It has greatly improved
the airport’s ability to more swiftly
remove FOD before an incident
occurs and demonstrates the
rôle technology can play in this
area. At the conference, delegates
gained a comprehensive insight
into the industry’s procedures
and its visions for the future fight
against FOD. Colin Wood, Airside
Operations Director, commented
on the outcome.
“The conference was a great
success, bringing together
across France, Signature Flight
Support can now schedule flight
support services for its customers,
arrange credit and billing and offer
a single invoice for all services
received for customers’ trips
within France.
Signature Flight Support offers
flight support co-ordination and
credit services, including fuel, at
many French airports such as Paris
Charles de Gaulle, Orly, Marseille,
Toulouse and Lyon. It is Signature’s
intention to continue to add
airports in France and Germany
to its network, thereby allowing
its customers to plan trips with
increased convenience and value-
added services.
John Conway of Dnata; Michael
Hancock of CAHA; Martin Stift
of ISS and Bates Sule, of AviaPort
Services in Lagos.
These members will be
working alongside Chairman
Samim Aydin, Barry Nassberg and
Sally Leible.
aviation leaders from around
the world representing airports,
airlines, regulators and solution
manufacturers. The ultimate aim
across the industry is to eliminate
FOD at its various sources and
delegates gained a unique insight
into the different approaches
taken. This conference will provide
a springboard to improve safety
across aviation and I am proud that
Heathrow is leading the way.”
Among the delegates were the
members of the Eurocae Working
Group on FOD. Dominic Walker,
Chairman for the group and
Business Development Director at
QinetiQ, said that he was excited
by the progress that could be
made in the Eurocae Working
Group, since the body of expertise
was unique in the field.
I N B R I E F
Cathay Kansai Terminal
Services has been renamed
as 2011 gets underway: it has
become CKTS Company.
Similarly, Singapore Airport
Terminal Services will in future
trade under the name of SATS.
Abu Dhabi Airports
Company will invest around
AED500m (US$136.1m) in
increasing the passenger
handling capacity at Abu
Dhabi International airport
by 75% over the next two
years. The move comes as an
interim measure to enhance
the handling capacity of the
airport, in the light of the
significant growth of Etihad
Airways at Terminal 3 after
just two years of operation.
Swiss and the KV Schweiz,
PUSH, SEV-GATA and
VPOD Sektion Luftverkehr
unions, together with staff
associations, have reached a
decision on a new Collective
Labour Agreement for the
company’s Swiss-based
ground personnel. Inter alia,
this new accord will include a
2% increase in basic salaries.
ASIG has received the
Best Airport Operator
award for a record, fifth
consecutive year. The award
was presented to ASIG by
the Armbrust Aviation Group
and is based on the results
of an independent survey
conducted through the
association’s Jet Fuel Report.
Flightcare has announced
that Flightcare Belgium
has been awarded its
ISAGO (IATA Safety Audit
for Ground Operations)
certificate, following the
successful completion of
its headquarters and station
audit in Brussels.
Lufthansa has said that it
will create 4,000 jobs for its
Germany-based locations
in 2011. The carrier is looking
to take on 2,200 flight
attendants in Frankfurt and
Munich, as well as 900 ground
personnel, 270 student pilots,
300 apprentices and other
technical staff.
 Signature | Scandinavia | February 2011
Scandinavian
handling alliance
is announced
The Accent Equity 2008
investment fund is acquiring a
stake in a new consolidation
of Scandinavian companies in
the ground handling services
sector. The new Group, called
the Aviator Airport Alliance,
includes the Swedish company
Nordic Aero and the Norwegian
companies Røros Flyservice and
Norport Handling. Accent Equity
2008 holds a 50% stake in the
company, while the founders of
the three member companies,
together with the company
management, own the remaining
50%. The new group has an
annual turnover of SEK1bn and
musters 1,250 employees.
The three companies initially
included in the group are based
in Sweden and Norway, but also
have operations in Denmark
and Finland. The companies will
continue to do business under
their current brand names, but
will share certain functions
under the common brand
Aviator Airport Alliance. Accent
Equity’s goal is, together with
the other owners, to build up a
Sofia airport
greets its new
ground handler
Late last year a new ground
handling company started up
operations in Sofia, Bulgaria.
According to Goldair Handling
Bulgaria, the country’s strong
economic growth, together
with its rapidly-rising air travel
volumes, were attractive
reasons for the new venture,
one that fits neatly into Goldair
Handling’s strategy of gaining
key footholds in promising new
strong independent European
ground handling services
provider.
“This is a growing sector
where the airlines increasingly
prefer to buy these services,”
states Niklas Sloutski, CEO
at Accent Equity Partners, an
advisor to Accent Equity 2008.
“The founders of the three
member companies have all
created strong entities that can
now grow further on a common
base. We are planning for
strong growth, both by organic
expansion in new markets and
by acquisitions and broadening
of the range of services.”
The new ground handling
services group has customers
among most of the airlines that
are active in the Nordic market:
operations are conducted
at some 20 or so airports in
Sweden, Norway, Denmark and
Finland. Customers include Air
Baltic, Amapola, British Airways,
Finnair, Air France/ KLM, Malmö
Aviation, NextJet, Norwegian Air
Shuttle, Ryanair, Qatar Airways,
Skyways and Thomas Cook.
markets.
Thus Goldair Handling Bulgaria
has entered this market as the
second independent ground
handling company at Sofia.
The airport handled over
3.1m passengers in 2009, and
passenger numbers are currently
rising at an annual rate of 15%;
further double-digit growth is
expected in the foreseeable
future.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 3
Safety strategies
Towards a safer
environment
In the run-up to the Ground Handling International Asian Conference in Ho Chi
Minh City, we take a look at the extent of safety provision and legislation extant
within Asia - and ask whether the current situation could be further enhanced.
eaders with some knowledge declares that in his experience there are
R
of safety practices and very few bodies that set out and regulate
legislation within Europe as Safety Management Systems standards or
well as the Far East tend to prerequisites on a global or regional basis; this
agree that the two differ. tends to be driven by each country or state in
In the west, the European which Menzies operates, and which can vary
Aviation Safety Agency considerably.
is perceived to be at the “Within Menzies we considered our own
heart of a safer aviation corporate legal and moral obligations and
environment: firmly focussed adopted a standard approach, using the UK
on making the whole business model and implemented our
of air travel as safe as possible, own Safety Management
EASA was set up to monitor the implementation System network-wide, which
of standards through inspections of the EU forms the foundation of
Member States; in addition to this, it also our safety programmes. This “It would be
provides the necessary technical expertise, along establishes a framework of
with training and research. standard polices, processes
useful to see
When the spotlight turns to Asia, it seems
that there is no equivalent body or agency as
and procedures to ensure
the highest levels of health
structures like
a focal point. However, two associations merit and safety are achieved EASA on all the
mention here. consistently across our
Altogether, 17 scheduled airlines in the operations, irrespective of continents and
region belong to the Association of Asia Pacific geographical location.
Airlines. Amongst other items, a resolution “IATA (AHM610) sets out having these
passed in 2010 by the AAPA reiterated its call the basic principles of an
on Asia Pacific governments to favourably SMS, which also forms part
organisations
consider the creation of a co-operative Asia
Pacific regional body to provide enhanced
of the ISAGO standards and
is an area that is thoroughly
ÀQDOO\XQGHU
safety oversight and guidance to national scrutinised before the ICAO roof”
airworthiness authorities. The resolution also companies achieve ISAGO
called on regulators and industry stakeholders registration.” Michael
to work in a collaborative manner and support In this respect, IATA’s
initiatives aimed at the enhancement of ISAGO initiative is seen Thuersam,
regional safety.
Aside from the AAPA, the Australasian
as a positive tool going
forward for the industry.
Swissport
Aviation Ground Safety Council has striven Bob explains that for the
towards the promotion of ground safety and first step, each company has
the delivery of safety education for over three to satisfactorily complete
decades. It numbers just under 50 members, the process and be signed off at the corporate
which includes carriers, airports and service level, which in effect provides the high level
providers, all of whom operate in the region. umbrella that is required before a company can
It’s fair to say, though, that in general move to the second step.
individual countries establish and follow their Step two requires each station to
own procedures and practices. Is this, then, a independently prepare and undergo the
recipe that works to the satisfaction of both station-level audit, which is conducted by an
handlers and carriers? Or is there scope for a IATA Pool Auditor.
different approach? “Then, once the corporate and station audit
is completed and signed off by IATA, then and
Handler initiatives only then will that station appear on the ISAGO
Handler experience, as might be expected, is register and the programme rolls on to the next
varied and much depends upon the country (or selected station. In short, we have to jump
countries) wherein each operates. through the hoop every time that we decide to
Menzies’ spokesperson, Bob Newman, apply ISAGO at a station.”
4 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
Swissport’s Michael Thuersam underlines Bob
Newman’s comments on ISAGO.
“As you know, within the aviation industry,
ISAGO is being pushed by IATA and their
members for the ground handling sector.
Swissport, along with other independent
handlers such as Menzies, Servisair and
Aviapartner, has been supporting the
programme from its start and development
and today we feel that ISAGO has been already
widely recognised amongst
us.
“The group of airline
pool members is constantly
growing, so that we can
expect it to become
the worldwide standard
for ground operations.
In addition, individual
regulators and authorities
are actively supporting the
programme.
“The UK CAA is accepting
the audits done by the
pool for carriers under their
certificate (under temporary
conditions); Seattle Tacoma
airport is mandating ISAGO
registration for service
providers and the Dutch
CAA is requesting the same
for Schiphol airport. Also,
EASA is interested - and
we’re all waiting for them
to accept and recognise the
programme.
“To my knowledge,
there is nothing like
EASA existing in the Asian region and all the
countries are setting and following their own
rules. It would be useful to see structures like
EASA on all the continents and having these
organisations finally under the ICAO roof. With
such a structure and the active support of the
ISAGO programme (accepting, recognising and
with involvement in further development),
a worldwide valid standard for safe ground
operations and safety management could
be easily established for the benefit of all
stakeholders: that means governments, airlines,
service providers, insurers, passengers, freight
forwarders and last, but not least, also all our
employees.

“Maybe there would be a long way to go to
achieve an AASA. In the meantime, airlines and
ground service providers in the Far East should
promote and lobby for ISAGO with every
individual country’s regulators. There should be
one standard and one programme, developed
by experts and those who are mainly affected:
that is, the airlines and the ground handlers.”
Bangkok Flight Services has melded a series
of standards to come up with a workable
solution.
Speaking for the handler, Stewart Sinclair
says that he has developed the business along
four main standards, namely ISO 9000 for the
Quality Management System; TAPA for Air
Cargo Security; OHSAS 18001 for Safety and
ISAGO for covering all of the above points in
line with IATA standards.
“Bangkok Flight Services has developed
its own procedures and practices based on
global best practice that has been gleaned
from the experience within the aviation
industry of our Senior Management Team.
Each of our airline customers has their own
set of standards, policies and procedures, and
we have worked over the last four years to
merge these into our own best practice to
establish a safety benchmark that covers our
core businesses. Where airline safety policy
differs, we have aimed to impose the most
stringent safety practices as our benchmark.
Where one airline’s safety policy differs from
other airlines, we implement the airline-
specific practices for these airlines. In effect,
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our own policies and procedures cover the
vast majority of the tasks and actions required
in our business with some individual airline
differences. By going through the OHSAS
certification programme, we brought in an
external audit body to advise us during the
preparation for the audit; and during this
process, we revisited specific areas such as
risk assessment, safe working practices, local
legislation and airline-specific challenges. This
allowed us to fine tune our safety policy,
procedures and training.”
He goes on to state that every incident
is thoroughly investigated, reported and
shared with the BFS team through briefings,
notice boards and training programmes. Any
staff member involved in any incident or
accident is immediately re-trained before he
or she is allowed to resume their job. Each
employee undertakes a five to eight day
training programme, covering the basics of the
business but specifically safety, security and
human factors. Recurrent training of between
40 and 120 hours per year is undertaken for
each employee, depending on grade and job
function.
He continues: “The specific challenges
in Asia are the level of education and the
disregard for personal safety that is especially
evident through South Asia. For example,
people commonly ride motorcycles without
helmets, often dressed in T-shirts, shorts and
flip-flops: so awareness is the biggest issue
we have with our staff. Taking shortcuts
| Ph: +612 4647 7979
Safety strategies
is commonplace and this needs to be
continuously addressed to prevent people
putting themselves, or others, at risk.
“Having said all this, we are proud of our
safety record at BFS and we have a low rate of
accidents or incidents at work. However, we
do lose three or four staff per year through
motorcycle accidents.
“With regard to where we would like to be,
the key here is education and regulation. People
need to be educated during their formative
years to be more aware of risks and how to
prevent them. People generally do what they
want to do or what is easiest - so getting
them to change, to become risk-aware, is very
challenging. Usually it needs to be regulated:
in other words, enforcing motorcycle helmets,
seatbelts and so on.”
Stewart confirms that typically legislation
comes from the host country and not a
regional body, unless it is initiated by a
regulatory body such as IATA.
“BFS is regularly audited by our airline
customers, based on IATA standards, to
ensure that we are operating to their safety
requirements. Our internal investigations, risk
assessments and ongoing training enable us to
be in a position to satisfy these audits.
“If ISAGO gathers steam and gets approved
by the regulatory agencies of each country,
then this should be the benchmark to ensure
safe operations. If it doesn’t, I guess the airlines
will fall back on JAR-OPS or other similar
standards.”
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 5
 L E G A L C O L U M N
7KHÀQDOFKDSWHU"
Here Anneris Pena, Bankruptcy Counsel at McBreen & Kopko,
looks at the ramifications of Chapter 15.
n 1997, the United Nations
Commission on International Trade
I Law (UNCITRAL) adopted the Model
Law on Cross-Border Insolvency
(hereafter referred to as the Model
Law) to create a process by which
foreign insolvency proceedings
are recognised by other countries’
courts. In the US, this Model Law
is known as Chapter 15 of the
Bankruptcy Code, which implements
virtually all of the substantive
provisions of the Model Law.
In order to qualify as a Chapter 15, the accredited
representative of the foreign debtor must file a
petition in the bankruptcy court seeking “recognition”
of a “foreign proceeding.” The Court is authorised to
recognise the foreign proceeding as either a “main”
proceeding (pending in the debtor’s home country) or
a “nonmain” proceeding (pending in a country where
the debtor has an “establishment”). The Automatic Stay
is only automatically triggered upon the finding of a
“main” proceeding.
Chapter 15 proceedings are filed to protect a
foreign debtor’s assets in the US from creditor attack;
to establish procedures for US creditors filing proofs
of claim; to bind creditors to a restructuring plan
approved in a foreign proceeding; to facilitate sales of
assets in the US; to permit a debtor to use the “cash
collateral” of its senior lenders in the US or to permit
discovery of parties subject to US jurisdiction. In many
instances, proofs of claim must be filed in the foreign
proceeding.
In Chapter 15, trade creditors need not worry about
preference issues. A Chapter 15 debtor cannot sue
on any preference or fraudulent transfer law unless a
Chapter 7 or 11 petition is filed.
In contrast to a Chapter 11, the Automatic Stay
imposed via section 362 of the Bankruptcy Code is not
automatically invoked upon the filing of a Chapter 15.
Absent a Court Order seeking protection, a debtor’s
US assets or businesses during the intervening period
between the petition date and the date on which
the Court enters the Order recognising the foreign
proceeding are not protected.
While a foreign airline’s assets may be primarily
located in a foreign country, they are likely to maintain
aircraft, replacement parts and equipment in the
US. Absent Court intervention, an airline’s assets
could be seized; contract counterparties could use
the insolvency proceeding as a pretext to terminate
contracts or require additional security, tighten credit
terms and so on. Thus, under Chapter 15, the Court
is authorised to issue provisional relief such as a
Temporary Restraining Order, ordering the application
of the Automatic Stay.
An Automatic Stay will be granted only if the debtor
can demonstrate that it would suffer irreparable harm
if not granted, and that there is either a likelihood of
success on the merits of the debtor’s application or a
balancing of equities in the debtor’s favour.
6 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
For trade creditors who are not being compensated
for their services, who are at the whim of a bankrupt
airline that, in many instances, has stopped selling
tickets, is constantly changing its schedules, cancelling
flights and which is likely to shut down operations
shortly with no hope of payment to creditors, the
Temporary Restraining Order and thereafter, the
Preliminary Injunction Order, are tough pills to swallow.
For labour providers, the airline’s economic turmoil
makes it difficult for the provider to maintain staffing
levels on a consistent basis. Their
employees, many of whom are
part-time workers or have two
jobs, are unable to change their
work schedules at short notice and
may resign or request assignment
transfers. The cancellation of flights
adversely affects the provider’s
continued ability to meet the costs
of its labour forces and equipment
expenses.
For service and fuel providers, they
may be obligated, via a Court Order,
to continue to provide manpower
and equipment to service the
debtor’s flights since without these
services and fuel, flights would be
cancelled, adversely affecting the
debtor’s estate.
In order to protect these
creditors, an application may be
made seeking “sufficient protection”
and assurances for the creditor,
in accordance with 11 U.S.C. §
1522(a). The Court may grant
discretionary relief to the foreign
representative only if the interests
of the creditors are protected.
Among the requirements the Court
may impose are that the airline
maintains insurance coverage and
makes payment for all post-petition
goods and services rendered by McBreen & Kopko
such provider within a reasonable
time period. The Order can make 500 North Broadway
provision for a Notice of Default to
be sent to the debtor in the event
Suite 129
of non-payment and if this remains Jericho, New York 11753
uncured, the Court could allow
the service provider or refueller to Tel. (516) 364-1095
discontinue providing goods and/ or
services without further notice.
Fax (516) 364-0612
Thus, it is not terribly difficult
for a service provider or refueller
to obtain some form of protection and assurance,
even if limited, and there is no concern that payments
received within 90 days of filing (possible preference
payments) will have to be returned. However, proofs
of claim may have to be filed in the foreign proceeding,
perhaps in that country’s language, and subject to that
country’s laws.

C O N T R A C T S
North Hub Services has concluded
a deal with Turkish Airlines. As from
December 19, it has been offering full
ground handling services at Riga.
Juneyao Airlines has appointed Hactl
as its cargo ground handler at Hong Kong
International airport to support its new
service between Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Fraport and Lufthansa signed a new
agreement in December covering ground
handling for all of the airline’s aircraft at its
Frankfurt hub over the next eight years.
ASIG has announced that Frontier
Airlines has renewed its aircraft de-icing
agreements with it for provision of
services at Ronald Reagan Washington
National, Indianapolis International,
Chicago Midway and General Mitchell
International airports. Frontier has also
awarded ASIG two new locations, namely
Bradley International and Salt Lake City
International airports.
Swissport Ukraine launched its
operation in Kharkov in December last.
It can now offer, besides its full handling
services in Kiev, a range of passenger and
airside services to the growing list of
airlines operating there.
Late last year United Express
transitioned its full passenger service and
ground handling to ATS at Edmonton
International airport.
ASIG has commenced aircraft refuelling
operations at London City airport on
behalf of Shell Aviation. Shell recently
signed a concession agreement to
operate as a fuel supplier at the airport.
Swissport Cargo Services has confirmed
a three year renewal of its existing JFK Delta
cargo warehouse and mail handling agreement,
which became effective in January.
Servair has signed a two year contract
with Air Madagascar for the latter’s
catering activities for flights from Paris.
Last October, ATS commenced
passenger services on behalf of Lufthansa
at Dallas/ Fort Worth International airport.
Swissport Cargo Services has been
compelled to cease its Budapest
operations.
Menzies Aviation has announced that
Lufthansa and bmi have selected it to
provide full ramp handling services for their
operations at London Heathrow airport.
Operations started in October 2010.
Swissport International has confirmed
the signing of two important contracts at
February 2011
Tokyo-Narita airport. Both Cathay Pacific
and Turkish Airlines have handed over
their ground service requirements to the Competence
handler; operations began in October. in GSE
Flightcare Ground Services has been
appointed by Emirates as its cargo
handling agent at Madrid airport.
Swissport International and Swiss have
extended their collaboration. The new
contract for 2010-2015 covers all ground
handling at Swiss’s three Swiss stations,
with a total annual volume of some
64,000 flights.
In late 2010, Cargojet awarded ATS
a multi-year contract to provide ramp
handling for its B767F and B727F freighters
at Calgary. Separately, United Airlines has
renewed its agreement at Calgary with ATS
and has entered into a multi-year contract.
In November last year, ASIG signed a
five year renewal with United Airlines for
aircraft refuelling at two of its busiest
airport hubs, namely San Francisco
International and Denver International.
At West Palm Beach Air Canada has
entrusted ATS’s PBI team with its full
passenger service and ground handling
contract: this began in October 2010.
In Riga, North Hub Services has
announced the conclusion of a ground
handling agreement with Bulgarian Alma
Tour, the operator of charter flights for
GoAdventure. Separately, NHS has begun
servicing Primera Air flights from Helsinki
Vantaa International airport to four
destinations. NHS is providing a full range
of ground handling services to the carrier.
DOLL High Loaders
Swissport-Losch has signed a six-year
contract with Lufthansa to provide
ground handling for the carrier’s CRJs and Being the leading manufacturer of
Embraer aircraft at Munich. This began in
January of this year. high loaders, DOLL is familiar with
the requirements for modern scis-
Servisair has been successful in securing sor lift vehicles.
a new multi-year ground handling
contract with British Airways in Helsinki. GSE made by DOLL stands for reli-
Starting in early February 2011, the
contract covers full passenger and ramp ability, technical and constructional
handling, including ticketing, for British longevity, easy handling and attrac-
Airways’ twice daily A320 operation to tive prices.
the Finnish capital.
In December 2010, ASIG secured a new
agreement with US Airways to provide
cabin cleaning services at London’s
Heathrow airport. DOLL Fahrzeugbau AG
D-77728 Oppenau
Servisair has started 2011 with new
Tel. +49 (7804) 49-0
easyJet contracts. The contracts, which
cover passenger and ramp handling, www.doll-oppenau.com
commenced on January 26 in Liverpool
and will start on February 16 in Newcastle.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 7

I T
Tackling the 1% factor a priority
At present, fraud experts estimate
that only around 1% of packages
are security-checked. IT specialist
INFORM believes that the air freight
industry should adopt fuzzy logic
based profiling procedures, which
have already proved their worth in
the prevention of credit card fraud.
At banks and credit institutes,
software using fuzzy logic
can monitor 4,100 credit card
transactions a second. The software
recognises suspicious transactions
End-to-end solution unveiled
SITA, together with baggage
handling system specialist BCS
Group, has unveiled a self-service
baggage solution for common-
use platforms that now provides
air passengers with the ability to
experience a true end-to-end self-
service, along with unassisted bag
tagging and drop-off.
The SITA/ BCS kiosk was unveiled
at Check-in Asia in Kuala Lumpur
last year. Its first appearance follows
a recent survey, which found that
continued growth of self-service
now depends on the ability of
RFID tags: reusable now in use
Tagsys has announced that Qantas
has deployed a reusable RFID bag
tag using its specialist technology.
According to the company, the bag
tags can store details for up to four
Advanced solutions for
Tokyo International
ARINC recently launched a
suite of advanced passenger
technologies for the opening of
the new five-storey International
Terminal at Tokyo’s Haneda airport.
Also known as Tokyo International
airport, Haneda is Japan’s busiest
airport, and following the opening
it will share the handling of
international flights with Narita
8 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
N E W S
among the payment and cash
movement patterns and is able
to stop them. It is not a matter of
simply identifying the actual fraud
attempt, but also allowing as many
genuine transactions as possible to
go ahead unhindered.
“The same approach can be used
for profiling air freight,” explains Dr
Andreas Meyer, head of the Risk &
Fraud division at INFORM. “From
the combination of information
such as origin, sender, address,
passengers to tag their bags and
drop them off without waiting in
a line. SITA’s Passenger Self-Service
Survey, the most comprehensive
global survey ever undertaken
of passenger use of air transport
self-service technology, found
that almost half of the survey
respondents who checked in at a
desk (rather than online or through
a kiosk), did so because of the need
to check in a bag. Ilya Gutlin, Vice
President Airport Solutions, SITA,
commented on the finding.
“Passengers have made their
flights and be reprogrammed for
future flights. These tags are currently
being used at both Sydney and Perth
domestic terminals by premium
frequent flyers. This initiative will
International.
Under a contract from Tokyo
International Air Terminal
Corporation, ARINC has deployed
more than 200 passenger check-in
and departure workstations at the
new terminal. ARINC’s advanced
vMUSE common-use passenger
technology will allow international
airlines to share the available
RFID | Scanning | Tokyo upgrade | February 2011
addressee, specific place of posting,
freight declaration and any previous
movements the parcel has made,
software using fuzzy logic can
identify suspicious items of freight
at the time and point of registering
the shipment electronically.”
Should the German government
go ahead with its five point plan
for air freight safety in the EU,
allowing safety authorities to
obtain electronic access to logistics
companies’ databases containing a
views quite clear: they want to use
more self-service. SITA’s Passenger
Self-Service Survey shows that
70% of passengers would tag their
own bag if they could. That is why
we are working with BCS Group
to deliver the missing links in the
unassisted bag drop and true end-
to-end self-service solutions for
the world’s airports, using common
use systems.”
With the SITA/ BCS service,
passengers can check in at a kiosk
where bag tags are also printed
for self tagging. Then they simply
be followed by deployments in
Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and
Canberra during the course of 2011.
Separately, Lufthansa has revealed
that it is considering several options
counter space and make the most
efficient use of the new terminal’s
facilities.
ARINC has also installed 40
common-use passenger kiosks at
the International Terminal, using
its advanced SelfServ technology.
The kiosks will support the diverse
check-in applications of the
growing number of carriers at the
sender’s name, address and freight
declarations, then it is only a matter
of time before freight profiling
software could be implemented all
over the EU.
“It may also be conceivable for
freight companies, in the same
way as banks, to be recognised for
their pro-active approach to freight
security by receiving international
certification once they have
installed such a profiling solution,” he
concludes.
proceed to a self-service bag drop
area where the BCS BAGgate will
automatically scan the bag tag
and reconcile the boarding pass.
Subsequently the bag is weighed,
measured and dispatched for the
flight without the need for any
agent intervention.
SITA has been working with BCS
for nearly ten years on various
Australian baggage handling system
integration projects and the first
trials of this end-to-end self-
service are planned at an Australian
airport.
in terms of self-service bag drops,
including a home printed baggage tag
with a reusable RFID sleeve; a hybrid
paper RFID tag; and a permanent RFID
tag, which it is currently trialling.
terminal. As an alternative to check-
in counters, kiosks are preferred by
many travellers because they speed
up the check-in process.
ARINC has also equipped the
new International Terminal with its
efficient BagLink Baggage Messaging
System. Already in use at many
other major airports, ARINC BagLink
provides a proven interface between
airline host computers and the
airport’s baggage sortation system,
for reliable and efficient operations.
With both its domestic and
international terminals becoming
fully operational, Haneda expects
to handle many more flights in the
near future.

C A R G O
AirbridgeCargo wins again at Frankfurt
Fraport Cargo Services has
presented AirBridgeCargo Airlines with
its Best Cargo Performer 2010 award
after the airline increased its freight
volume through Frankfurt airport by
nearly 50% last year.
It is the second year in a row that
ABC has been recognised as the
leading carrier handled by Fraport in
terms of volume. In the first 11 months
of 2010, AirBridgeCargo (the scheduled
cargo airline of Volga-Dnepr Group),
saw its freight tonnage at Frankfurt
increase to nearly 103,000 tonnes
compared to just below 70,000 tonnes
for the same period of 2009.
ABC has been a customer of Fraport
since August 2008. In earning its place
as the largest cargo carrier handled
at Frankfurt by Fraport, ABC finished
the period ahead of other leading
airlines such as Air China, Cathay Pacific
and Emirates. The carrier was also
acknowledged by Fraport as achieving
the Biggest Volume Increase 2010.
AirBridgeCargo | February 2011
N E W S
Winfried Hartmann, Managing
Director of Fraport Cargo Services,
commented on the award: “In a
very strong market environment at
Frankfurt, AirBridgeCargo has again
proved how to serve their customers
in an outstandingly successful way.
For the second year in a row, Fraport
Cargo Services as the assigned
handling company is delighted to
honour AirBridgeCargo’s overall cargo
volume performance for the year 2010 (Left to right): Ivan Santoro – Deputy EMEA Operations Director; Anne Smirr, Head
with a Bembel, the traditional local of Sales, Fraport Cargo Services; Ludwig Hamburger, Regional Director, EMEA;
apple cider mug. After a very difficult Alexandra Bieser, Regional Customer Service Manager, EMEA; Winfried Hartmann,
year in 2009 we are very happy that, Managing Director, Fraport Cargo Services and Simone Wolf, Key Account and
together with ABC, we could lay the Business Development Manager, EMEA
foundation for such growth. The
relationship between Fraport Cargo “This victory became possible ranked the first among cargo carriers,”
Services and AirBridgeCargo is a thanks to the contribution and great added ABC’s Regional Director, EMEA,
model for partnership and a common performance of all the regions in the Ludwig Hamburger.
perspective for the future.” ABC network during this year, which in (ABC operates Boeing 747-400
Fraport hosts a special reception my mind was even tougher than 2009, freighter services linking Frankfurt
at Frankfurt Airport every year to given the severe competition. I hope with Russia, together with other
recognise the achievements of its best that ABC’s second success in a row will markets in Europe and China, Hong
cargo performers. set a good tradition for ABC as being Kong and Japan).
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 9

I T
Better passenger services at Pulkovo
St Petersburg’s Pulkovo airport,
the fourth busiest in Russia,
recently announced a major
improvement to passenger
services with the selection of
SITA’s AirportConnect Open
platform, which has been designed
to provide agent and self-service
check-in for its 6m passengers.
This five-year deal includes
the installation of 100 new
workstations and five CUSS
(Common Use Self-Service) kiosks
throughout the airport, in addition
to the modernisation of the
existing airport infrastructure.
Michael Richter, Executive
Director, Chief Operations Officer
WFS picks CHAMP for ICS for EU
Late in 2010 Worldwide Flight
Services announced the selection of
CHAMP Cargosystems to supply its
Five year plan for Cochin International
Cochin International airport, which
serves the fastest growing city on
India’s west coast, has announced
plans to enhance its passenger check-
in procedures. In order to achieve this
complex goal, the aiport recently said
that it has selected SITA to provide
the necessary automation of the
passenger check-in process (which
will include self-service check-in), as
well as passenger bag reconciliation.
Handling around 3m passengers
annually, by this move the airport is
Better communications on the ramp
In January, SITA announced the
successful initiation of a series of
operational trials at Charles de
Gaulle airport. The aim behind the
initiative was to demonstrate the
benefits of its planned AIRCOM
IP GateLink service for new
generation aircraft: this includes
such types as the Airbus A380
and Boeing 787 as well as newer
variants of the Boeing 777.
Gatelink is the airline industry
standard name relating to aircraft
10 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
N E W S
of Northern Capital Gateway,
Pulkovo airport’s managing
company, said: “By working with
SITA, the global aviation specialist,
and selecting AirportConnect
Open, we are able to provide both
the airlines and their passengers
with fast and efficient check-in
at our airport. Because this is a
common-use system, we will also
benefit from reduced investment
in infrastructure as passengers can
use the kiosks to check in for any
airline based here.”
SITA’s AirportConnect Open is
a CUPPS (Common Use Passenger
Processing System) compliant
platform. CUPPS is the recent
Global Customs Gateway (GCG) to
manage WFS’s European Union Import
Control System (EU ICS) requirements.
looking to transform itself into one of
the most modern regional gateways
to India.
The five-year, multi-million dollar
agreement will include the supply of
common use self-service (CUSS) kiosks
and more than 80 AirportConnect
Open workstations for check-in,
boarding, load control and baggage
areas. The airport has also introduced
SITA’s passenger bag reconciliation
and message distribution solutions
(specifically BagManager and
use of airport Wi-Fi to connect
into ground networks. SITA
and Hub telecom, working in
collaboration with Aéroports de
Paris and a major international
carrier, have set up a suitable
Wi-Fi infrastructure which A380
aircraft have successfully used
to complete broadband wireless
communication sessions during
routine turnarounds.
This major milestone adds the
French station to a growing list
Pulkovo | WFS | Cochin | SITA | February 2011
standard being adopted by the
air transport industry and SITA’s
AirportConnect Open is the only
fully-integrated common use
platform supporting CUPPS, CUTE
and Web-based applications, as
well as CUSS kiosk applications.
Boris Padovan, SITA’s Regional
Vice-President for East and Central
Europe, said: “This is an exciting
time for Pulkovo airport, which in
recent years has seen double digit
growth.
“This investment will not
only improve current passenger
check-in services and introduce
self-service check-in, but because
AirportConnect Open is CUPPS
WFS, which handles 3.5m tonnes
of cargo annually, has thus joined
numerous airlines and ground handlers
BagMessage) to ensure the right
bag always gets on the right flight;
concurrently this should increase
passenger satisfaction, enhance
security and cut costs for the airlines
which use the airport.
Through the use of SITA’s
AirportConnect CUSS kiosks and
common use workstations, the
airport provides advanced passenger
services to the 24 airlines that fly
domestic and international routes
from Cochin. CUSS kiosks enable
of important airports, including
Sydney and London’s Heathrow,
where AIRCOM IP GateLink trials
are currently underway to evaluate
the technical, operational and
commercial aspects of offering
this service on a wider scale for all
parties involved.
Once deployed at an airport,
AIRCOM IP GateLink provides
broadband wireless connectivity
on the ground during aircraft
turnarounds and layovers, thereby
compliant, the airport authority is
future-proofing its systems in line
with expected long term growth.”
The new systems have received
the backing and support of all
the airlines that provide services
in Pulkovo and the project is well
underway, with kiosks already in
use in both of the terminals.
Pulkovo airport serves the city
of St Petersburg and operates
flights from more than 70
domestic and international airlines.
Passenger figures in 2009 were
close to 7m while the long term
forecast is for passenger flows
to reach 17m by 2025 and 43m by
2039.
that had already selected CHAMP to
deliver EU ICS compliance before the
January 2011 deadline.
multiple airlines to share self-service
kiosks for faster passenger check-in,
while the common use platform
also allows shared airline use of the
workstations, thereby ensuring a
more efficient airport for both airline
and passenger alike.
Furthermore, AirportConnect
Open workstations and CUSS kiosks
also support the use of 2D barcode
technology at the airport, which
facilitates fast and convenient check-
in and boarding.
allowing airlines and airports
to take full advantage of the
operational benefits of these
new aircraft types. It has the
advantage of automating labour-
intensive and time-consuming
processes to retrieve and load
large volumes of aircraft systems’
data, which cannot otherwise be
transmitted cost-efficiently using
traditional data link services such
as the Aircraft Communication
Addressing and Reporting System.
Safety audit case study

was launched, Menzies had embarked on an internal

programme to review and standardise its own
policies and procedures through its internal SMART
programme. This was a significant investment in
time and resources, with challenging deadlines for
completion set by the Menzies Board. The SMART
programme is underpinned by the eight critical
pillars of our business, which sets the standards
that drive the safe and secure operating culture
that is synonymous with Menzies Aviation. All in all,
the process to achieve ISAGO compliance at the
corporate office level took around 12 months, and
a further six months for the station level. This was
achieved through a small dedicated project team at
each station, supported by our central Operational
Standards & Compliance (OSAC) team, who focused
on the corporate programme using specialist
resources seconded from operations, while at the
same time providing support and advice to guide
our stations each step of the way towards preparing
and achieving ISAGO registration. All in all, it was a
real team effort.”

Advice to others
“Initially we commissioned an external company
to undertake a corporate audit using the ISAGO
standards to help us identify any shortfalls. From
the results of this GAP study we chose to work
independently to make any corrections and align
ourselves with the ISAGO standards in readiness
for the full ISAGO corporate audit. We knew what
had to be done and put a formal project plan in
place and managed the process internally; we did, of
course, liaise closely with IATA throughout each step
For Yogesh Parekh it has been a challenging yet satisfying initiative of the process.
There were a number of issues that had to be
addressed to standardise and align the format and
style of our policies and procedures to meet the

ISAGO: ISAGO standards, but this work was well underway

as part of our internal SMART programme, which
was a programme being driven by the business.
ISAGO provided an opportunity for us to achieve a
credible evaluation of the work completed through
our SMART programme when benchmarked against

the way to go
Continuing our series on handlers who have passed
the ISAGO audit we find out about Menzies’
experiences with this initiative. Yogesh Parekh reports.
enzies became involved with
ISAGO (IATA Safety Audit
services. There were a number of fundamental flaws
in the early ISAGO model, which were thrashed
the ISAGO standards: so you could say that ISAGO
was the cherry on the cake!
“As with all such projects, you ask yourself
whether we would we do it again and what we
could do better - and more importantly, how this
process has helped the business. If I’m honest, the
results were driven by our SMART programme,
which is an ongoing process, and ISAGO acts as
a benchmark measurement tool that aligns us to
industry standards, which is what we hoped to
achieve.
“The real challenge is to keep pushing for better
performance and investing in innovative processes
which drive continual improvement.”

M for Ground Operations) from

the inaugural IATA Project
Co-ordination Group meeting,
which was held in Montreal back
in October 2006.
“At this stage,” says Yogesh
Parekh, Manager - Quality
Assurance and Compliance,
“ISAGO was at an embryonic
stage and very much based on
the successful IOSA model previously implemented
with its IATA member airlines. Of course, for the
airline members of IATA, the IOSA programme
was mandatory, unlike ISAGO which is a voluntary
programme for ground service providers and/ or
airlines that also provide contracted ground handling
out through a due process of consultation and a
resolution was finally agreed that met both the
requirements of IATA and the ground service
providers.”
Menzies continued to work with IATA in the
development of the ISAGO standards through
its active participation in the various task force
meetings and this involvement continues today,
since Menzies is a member of the ISAGO Oversight
Committee.
“There were several reasons why Menzies pursued
ISAGO, one of which was linked to the key goal
set by ISAGO to reduce the number of airline GSP
audits and press for common and clearly defined
audit standards that provide a consistent measure
across the industry. Also around the time that ISAGO
Advice to others
“My advice to any company considering
undertaking this process is to ask yourself this: will
it add value and is it the right thing to do for my
business?
“...as the ISAGO programme matures, more
airlines will be looking for GSPs that meet their
requirements...”
“Having the opportunity to spearhead the
ISAGO programme for Menzies was challenging but
was very satisfying when Corporate Head Office
was successfully followed by regional stations at
Amsterdam; San Jose; Macau and San Francisco.
We look forward to extending the programme to
other Menzies stations in due course.”

12 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL

 Conference chairman’s address

Welcome message
The 4th Ground Handling International Asian Conference
Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
ay I say how pleased I am to see you all here. Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Iraq,
No doubt, you too are pleased now that Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand

M airlines are again making profits - and that

these are substantial figures.
But exactly what figures shall we agree on?
IATA’s reforecast of their earlier reforecast is
that the global aviation industry should make
a US$5.3bn profit this year. Good news for
the ground handling industry - but before we
and Turkmenistan. But a major significant fact is that there is a
growing interest in building low cost terminals across the region
and airport city developments are poised to flourish.
So, will the continued growth of LCCs and the construction of
more low cost terminals change the face of passenger aviation
in Asia? It may in the short term, as established LCCs and their
fledgling competitors vie for market share and trail blaze new
get carried away, this translates into a margin routes to the benefit of their new found passengers. Does this
of 0.9% only. The fact is that most ground remind you of the situation in Europe nearly ten years ago? And
handling companies would not, indeed could what about the handlers? How do they feel about this new
not, operate on this level of margin - so where are we all heading? breed of customer? The fact is
The momentum of the Asian aviation business has once again that the handling rates in general
picked up and is vital to the rest of the world as it staggers to were higher in Europe 10 years
find growth and shake off the last three years of recessionary ago than they are today. The LCC
trends. Asia has a very important part to play. The IATA forecast effect, perhaps?
for 2011 is a profit of US$3bn with acceptable margins when LCC growth has slowed in
compared to the industry average, thanks to the recovery of Europe and traditional hub
freight markets, increased pax numbers and LCC growth. Asia airports have become less
seems to be working - and what’s more, working together. important, with second tier
In August 2010 ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian airports often favoured, which has
Nations ten member states and six non-ASEAN countries, led to less economy of scale for
collectively approved a US$290bn plan to develop infrastructure handlers, who continue to try to
in the Asia Pacific region, covering ASEAN, China and India. increase their rates, often in vain.
The plan includes all modes of transportation, energy, Is this what lies ahead for Asia?
telecommunications and other infrastructure development
projects, but most importantly approximately 700 airports.
Much of the airport development in the Asia Pacific region is
still taking place in China and India, although there are notable
Tim Ornellas
projects - some with private sector participation - in Vietnam, Conference Chairman/ Publisher
the Philippines and Indonesia. But a host of other countries are
set to benefit from the resurgence in confidence that include Ground Handling International

Thank you to our sponsors

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 13

 PRE-CONFERENCE - 21st March 2011

1500 - 1630 Registration for workshop attendees, coffee & Table-top Exhibition for GSE & IT Procurement
directors in the Grand Ballroom 2 & 3, Level 3
1630 - 1715 First workshop sessions, VIP 1 & 3
1715 - 1745 Coffee Break & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom 2 & 3, Level 3
1745 - 1830 Second wokshop sessions, VIP 1 & 3
1830 - 2200 Official Registration, Networking Party & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom 2 & 3,
Level 3

DAY ONE - 22nd March 2011

0900 - 0930 Registration, coffee & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom 2 & 3, Level 3
0930 - 0940 Conference Chairman’s Welcome Message
Tim Ornellas, Publisher, Ground Handling International
0940 - 1005 Financial Overview
What’s happening in the market? How are handlers valued and what has happened recently on
the M&A front?
Jon Connor, Director - Transport Services & Infrastructure, HSBC
1005 - 1030 ASEAN - An open market for aviation
As the aviation markets of the ASEAN countries open up, what are the opportunities and
challenges to airlines and ground handling companies?
Karmjit Singh, former CEO/COO SATS
1030 - 1055 How can handlers expedite in-bound US cargo uner the new security rules?
This presentation will aim to give handlers a better understanding of the in-bound
requirements to prevent rejected shipments and hold ups.
Mike Webber, President, Webber Air Cargo
1055 - 1105 Panel discusion
1105 - 1145 Coffee break & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
1145 - 1300 Cargo Panel Session
How can the movement of cargo become safer and faster? Are the recent IATA initiatives such
as eawb and security changes working?
Chaired by David Ambridge, General Cargo Manager, Bangkok Flight Services
1300 - 1430 Lunch & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
1430 - 1600 Open Panel Debate
An opportunity to discuss industry issues and concerns with a panel of industry experts made
up from handlers, regional airlines and LCCs. IATA has been working hard to roll out ISAGO to
the handling community and is now working on GOM (Ground Operations Manual). A
full session will be devoted to bring all stakeholders up to date and to enable
those stakeholders who have not yet started working on their ISAGO accreditation to
be made aware of the process and benefits.
1600 - 1745 Pre-dinner cocktail networking party in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
1800 sharp Coaches depart from the hotel lobby for the Delegate Dinner
 DAY TWO - 23rd March 2011

0845 - 0930 Coffee & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
0930 - 0935 Chairman’s opening remarks
Tim Ornellas, Publisher, Ground Handling International
0935 - 1000 The LCCs’ view - Panel session
With the region’s low cost carriers offering in excess of 1 million seats annually and making
over 70,000 flights, this sector’s requirements need to be fully understood in order
that the required level of passenger and ramp handling can be delivered. A major low
cost/value carrier gives an insight.
Chaired by Benson Tan, Head of Ground Operations, Jetstar Asia Airways
1000 - 1025 The changing rôle of the passenger service agent
The passenger service agent is the first face seen by the passenger but the rôle of the
passenger service agent is evolving. How has the agent’s rôle changed, what are the causes
and, will the rôle of a passenger service agent cease to exist?
Gerald W Smith, Manager - Senior Solution Designer, SITA
1025 - 1050 Airline alliances at airports - sum of partners or separate entity?
Airline alliances strive for a seamless experience for their passengers, which basically means
transfer connections should be offered as within one airline. For that purpose alliances urge
partners to move under one roof (STAR programme) and seek co-operation. This obviously
has an effect on the services requested from ground handlers and the way they are
purchased. Cees de Vos, Director Airport Services, SKYTEAM
1050 - 1100 Panel discussion
1100 - 1200 Coffee & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
1200 - 1225 Safety on the ramp
How can the handling industry work together to reduce accidents on the ramp? The airline,
airport and ground handlers sit together to address key issues.
Martin Eran-Tasker, Technical Director, Association of Asia Pacific Airlines
1225 - 1250 IT - do you really know what you need?
What ground handling processes benefit from the implementation of IT systems? How can
IT systems improve the handling operations and the bottom line?
1250 - 1305 Panel discussion
1305 - 1430 Lunch & Table-top Exhibition in the Grand Ballroom, Level 3
1430 - 1600 One-to-One meetings
1600 - 1630 Farewell cocktail and close of Conference & Exhibition
1630 - 1800 One-to-One meetings
1830 Transfer to the Shopping Market

DAY THREE - 24th March 2011

0900 - 1230 Training Day - SLAs
Understanding and delivering your customers’ expectations are the keys to a long and
successful business arrrangement, and negotiating and agreeing the right SLA is often the key.
Colin Temple, Independent Airport Services Advisor
1230 - 1330 Lunch at the Saigon Cafe, Level 1
1400 - 1700 Discover Saigon by cyclo
4th Asian Ground Handling International Conference: The Exhibitors
AEROVIRONMENT
AeroVironment has developed a suite of
technical features that are safer, smarter, easier
to use and more cost-effective than traditional
charging systems. PosiCharge brings to market
a next-generation intelligent rapid charging
battery system for ground support equipment
and other electric vehicle applications. Many
of these vehicles are used almost continuously
in two or three shift operations and may utilise
multiple batteries in order to realise throughput
requirements. PosiCharge, an alternative to
battery changing, significantly reduces capital
costs, labour costs and non-productive space
allocations, thereby effectively redefining the
electric GSE industry. Companies like American
Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta, United,
Menzies, Ford and Toyota have already adopted
PosiCharge.
AIRMARREL
AIRMARREL is a major worldwide manufacturer
and exporter of ground support equipment
and has sold its products to over 150 countries.
Established more than 38 years ago, AIRMARREL
has developed an important profile and has
dedicated all of its energy to the realisation
of a wide range of products. Its range includes
high loaders (from 3.5 tons up to 32 tons),
catering trucks, ambulifts and cleaning trucks,
pallet transporters, towable and self-propelled
passenger stairs. This has been thanks to the
technology and the modernity of its structure
and its organisation. As an ISO 9001:2000
certified company, AIRMARREL’s key attribute
remains, however, a great respect for customer
expectation, with a permanent Leitmotiv: ease
of use, ease of maintenance and lowest TCO
in the marketplace. In designing the first green
high loader (based on hydrogen fuel technology)
in partnership with AIRLIQUIDE, AIRMARREL
aims to position itself as the future leader of
tomorrow’s environmentally-friendly GSE - and
is now looking at exploiting this joint venture
technology elsewhere in its range.
BLISS-FOX GROUND SUPPORT
EQUIPMENT
Bliss-Fox Ground Support Equipment is the only
Australia-based designer and manufacturer of
aircraft towing and pushback tractors and it builds
one of the best tractors available on the market
today. Recognised primarily for its range of high
quality and durable tractors, Bliss-Fox also designs
and manufactures other speciality vehicles and
equipment for the defense and mining sectors.
16 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
Leading the airport range is the F1-500 series tractor
which, at up to 70 tonnes, is capable of handling
the pushback/ towing requirements of a fully-
laden A380. Bliss-Fox is a specialist division of The
Nepean Group, Australia’s leading, privately-owned,
diversified engineering and industrial manufacturing
conglomerate. Further details: www.blissfox.com
CONTRAC
CONTRAC, the leading manufacturer of low
floor airport buses, has introduced a new,
attractively-priced model called the COBUS
2500, which completes the COBUS range. With
a passenger capacity of around 65, it is designed
for cost-effective, quality service. Meeting all
IATA and international standards, the COBUS
2500 is ideal for airside shuttle services. A road-
going version makes it attractive for carpark
shuttle services and there is the further option
of an electric version. Along with the COBUS
3000 and COBUS 2700, this new model means
now that all types of aircraft can be handled in a
reliable and cost-effective way.
GOLDHOFER
In the field of airport technology, Goldhofer
has defined new standards worldwide and has
revolutionised the market with the design of its
towbarless aircraft tractors. Today, the Goldhofer
AST range of aircraft tractors consists of four
basic types with some variants which cover
almost all civil aircraft. The various tractors can
handle aircraft weights from about 150 tonnes to
well over 600 tonnes MTOW.
For the recovery of damaged or inoperable
aircraft, Goldhofer has developed a recovery
and transport system named ARTS. This flexible
system can be individually adjusted to the
prevailing recovery situation.
INFORM
INFORM is a team of raised-in-industry ICT
professionals who research, develop and deliver
cutting-edge software solutions to improve
airport and ground handling operations and
who provide consulting services. INFORM’s
flagship product, GroundStar, used by over
60 organisations in more than 100 airports
worldwide, is recognised for its unsurpassed
optimisation capabilities, comprehensiveness
and flexibility at the strategic, tactical and
operational levels. GroundStar provides tools
for the improvement of processes, the planning
and real-time deployment of mobile and
immobile resources, the monitoring of the entire
turnaround and the production of business
intelligence to guarantee maximum adherence to
flight schedules at minimum cost.
JBT AEROTECH
JBT AeroTech is a leading global supplier of
customised solutions and services for high
value applications in air transportation. We
design, manufacture and service technologically
sophisticated ground support equipment for the
airline industry that offer the lowest total cost
of ownership (TCO). The product offerings of
JBT AeroTech ground support equipment include
the Commander main deck and lower deck
loaders, Tempest de-icers, Expediter towbarless
tractors, conventional tractors, mobile passenger
steps, transporters and the RampSnake bulk
loaders, which are supported by a global
network of aftermarket service and spare parts
centres. JBT AeroTech is committed to providing
environmentally-friendly products that conform
to green initiatives.
MALLAGHAN
Mallaghan is one of the leading manufacturers
and suppliers of GSE in Europe and from its
factory it exports to many markets such as the
UK, Europe, the Middle East and the Far East. Its
manufactured products include passenger steps,
PRM Medilifts, toilet and water trucks as well as
catering trucks. The current year for Mallaghan
has seen constant growth and the company is
delighted to have agreed many repeat orders
from current customers as well as found fresh
customers in new countries.
SITA WORKBRIDGE
SITA WorkBridge offers the next generation in
resource management solutions designed to
optimise all airport and ground handling operations
and bridge the gap between planning and
operations. Its solutions deliver optimised planning,
rostering, staff management, resource allocation,
real-time situational awareness and mobile device
enabled service registration capabilities. SITA
WorkBridge enables more efficient planning and
allocation of resources, so you can do more with
less. It brings improved operational efficiency
and communications to reduce administration
overheads. Further, it provides reliable and
operational information to improve service levels,
 4th Asian Ground Handling International Conference: The Exhibitors
with accurate billing and the ability to track costs.
SITA WorkBridge software solutions will support
all airport and ground handling operations, ranging
from ramp to passenger services, and extending to
security, cleaning, catering, cargo, fuelling and PRM
provision.
TANSONNHAT INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT GROUND SERVICES
TIAGS was established in 1993, and was one of the
first ground handling services company in South-
east Asia (and amongst the first 12 companies in
the world) to apply for ISAGO (IATA Safety Audit
for Ground Operations) certification. TIAGS is
committed to providing customer airlines with
ground services of the highest quality through
continual improvement in Safety and Quality
management systems as well as through a pro-
active attitude, which is shared by over 1,500
professionals. We currently deliver services
to over 24 carriers, including Vietnam Airlines,
Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, Thai
Airways, Malaysia Airlines and Eva Airways.
TLD
The TLD Group is a leading industrial company
specialising in commercial and military
airport ground support equipment. Through
its extensive worldwide sales and service
network of 25 offices, TLD distributes and
supports efficiently its 15 lines of equipment,
designed and manufactured in its six different
factories (two in Asia, in North America and in
Europe). The quality, simplicity and low cost of
operation of TLD equipment, including loaders,
towbarless tractors, jet starters, transporters
and air conditioning units, have forged the TLD
reputation. Energetic efficiency and the latest
engine emission standards are key directions of
its product development. A strong customer
support commitment, allied with innovative
engineering and competitive pricing, has allowed
TLD to become a clear leader in the GSE market.
TOPSYSTEM
With its IT suite Ground Handling System (GHS),
topsystem’s aviation department offers an
extensive modular software solution for planning
and controlling handling-related processes, from
contract drafting, flight scheduling and service
recording up to the invoicing. Being completely
Web-based, the software is installed on a
central server and can be accessed from any
station company-wide with a simple browser.
It allows the use of identical data wherever
possible and individual adaptations wherever
necessary. Cutting-edge technology and
extensive solutions specially developed for the
comprehensive handling business significantly
help to optimise work processes - and thus help
to minimise effort and to maximise revenue.
TRANSTEC OVERSEAS
This Gujarat, India-based company specialises in
the manufacture of GSE and cargo equipment
to IATA standards. Its portfolio includes
towable and self-propelled steps; beltloaders
and baggage belt conveyors; water and toilet
carts; scissor lifts; pallet dollies; containers and
conveyor systems. It can also install complete
ETV and ASRS systems. Transtec’s customer base
is varied and it has sold units to GlobeGround
India, Celebi, Menzies-Bobba, Air India, Cambata
and Bird-Worldwide, amongst others. A skilled
team ensures that it can offer a comprehensive
service to its clients: training, after-sales, GSE
commissioning, repair work and modifications
are all part of its package to the end user.
TREPEL
TREPEL Airport Equipment meets the GSE
requirements of today’s modern airports, with
a complete product range of ground support
equipment. It offers cargo loaders from a 3.5
tonne capacity up to the new 35 tonne MDL as
well as transporters and an electric tow tractor.
Two brand new products have recently been
added: the CHALLENGER 700, a conventional
aircraft tractor capable of handling a fully-loaded
A380 and the CHAMP 70We, an electric-
powered 7 tonne pallet/ container loader with
the innovative battery quick-change system, the
PLUG-I-O. Furthermore, in 2010 TREPEL launched
a smaller, conventional aircraft tractor version
with a 16 tonne deadweight, the CHALLENGER
160; and a medium sized tractor with a 43 tonne
deadweight, the CHALLENGER 430. The same
outstanding features of the CHALLENGER 700
are incorporated in these two models.
VESTERGAARD COMPANY
Vestergaard Company has 40 years of experience
in manufacturing premium quality GSE
equipment that fit the needs of the smallest
commuter as well as the largest commercial
aircraft. Today, the company’s focus is on de-
icing, toilet and water servicing units as well as
aircraft washer units. The de-icing product ranges
from the small Elephant Sigma all the way to the
highly flexible Elephant Beta-15. The toilet and
water servicing units range from small towable
units and electric vehicles to highly specialised
units, designed and built on commercial chassis.
Vestergaard Company efficiently supplies spare
parts, technical support and advice for all its
products from offices in Denmark and the US. In
addition, technical assistance and comprehensive
inspections are available worldwide.
X OPS SODEXI
X OPS (operations on screen) is a solution for
real time control of mobile equipment in the
warehouse and on the ramp. It enables visual
control, planning and project simulation of all
airport vehicles. It has already been operating
successfully at Paris CDG airport for some four
years. Veolia Airport Services, Air France, WFS,
Sodexi, Keolis and Flybus already rely on X OPS.
The system monitors all linked operations such
as cleaning, fuelling, passenger transfers and
baggage and distribution of cargo pallets to
and from aircraft. X OPS combines geolocation,
teletransmission and video as well as all the
available techniques for data seizure such
as PDA, RFID and barcodes. The system can
function alongside other systems such as GPS
and wireless communication.
ZEBRA
Zebra Enterprise Solutions (ZES) is a leading
supplier of state-of-the-art technology,
providing hardware and software to locate,
track, manage and optimise high-value assets,
equipment and people. The real-time asset
management solution improves both visibility
and velocity of GSE to gain measurable business
improvements. ZES Fleet Management System
optimises the GSE fleet at any airport operation,
monitors the location, displays the operational
status, supports the maintenance planning and
is the basis for the fuelling strategy of the GSE
units. ZES utilises products that are based on
ISO/ IEC 24730-2, Cisco CCX Wi-Fi, precision
GPS and UWB technologies, offering a wide
range of advanced solutions that are “application
matched”, enabling every customer to put the
right asset in the right place at the right time.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 17
GH02
 Safety and training

Health and Safety Executive figures. With that in

Visual appeal
Safety techniques come in all formats:
here we look at the DVD.
ast year (see Ground Handling
International, October 2010)
into mini-episodes. These episodes vary in length:
some are simply two or three minutes’ duration
mind, a new training DVD has been released to
help cut the number of injuries among baggage
handlers and other airside workers.
Launched at the RAF Hendon Museum by the
Institution of Occupational Safety and Health
(IOSH), the Airport Airside Safety Induction DVD
is being offered to airport operators, airlines,
baggage handling agents and other airline service
providers nationwide. IOSH’s Aviation and
Aerospace Group commissioned the film to help
workers, in particular new or temporary staff,
become more aware about potential hazards

L we profiled the work of Global

Visual Solutions. Readers may
recall that Mark Coogan had
decided to change the way
safety was presented to the
workforce and to that end he
began to utilise the medium
of specially-shot film. By all
accounts the idea has been
well-received by the sector.
Thus it will come as no surprise to learn that
other bodies have started to look at the use of
film and DVD as a training aid.
From the Bowman Studio comes the Aviation
Ground Safety Training Toolkit, which was
produced in Australia. This is billed as an advisory
type of film and the DVD splits up into several
different segments, which themselves divide up
further. Thus there are headings for refuelling,
airside driving, manual handling, freighters, ESH
and PPE and so on, each one further sub-dividing
but others run for much longer, depending upon
the subject matter.
There is a very useful section on what to do
in the event of a fluid spill on the ramp; and
other enlightening sections look at emergency
procedures and how to adapt to an airport shut-
down. There is also information on dealing with
airport construction works and an explanation of
the Circle of Safety procedure.
Because the film divides up into bite-sized
chunks, it lends itself to viewing between shifts
and during quieter periods of the day.
The DVD is A$250 per copy and can be
obtained by e-mail: steve@bowman-studio.
com.au Alternatively, this information is also
available on the AAGSC website: www.aagsc.org/
resources/interactive toolkit
A UK solution
Over 2007-2008 there were more than 1,600
airside accidents logged in the UK, according to
when working airside.
The DVD has drawn praise from the HSE and
Civil Aviation Authority. To compile the visual
recording, IOSH teamed up with East Midlands
airport-based operator bmi. The recording
includes advice on safety passes, aircraft and
hazards to look out for when refuelling.
Bmi’s Health, Safety and Environmental
Manager, Keith Merrie, an IOSH member, said
that his company welcomed the DVD.
“As one of the UK’s leading airlines, we
endeavour to ensure all staff are fully aware of
the hazards of working at airside. IOSH’s airside
safety DVD will be used as part of our rigorous
health and safety training strategy, with the
aim of making staff more risk savvy and thus
reducing the likelihood of accidents at airside.”
The DVD is available free of charge directly
from IOSH’s Aviation and Aerospace Group.
To request a copy (for those who work in the
industry), simply e-mail: networks@iosh.co.uk

If You Knew ...

You could reduce your fleet by 25% and still grow your business.
You could bill more accurately and increase revenue.
You could reduce your maintenance bill by up to 40%.

Visit ZES GmbH, Zebra Enterprise Solutions at booth 14 at the 4th Asian Ground
Handling International Conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 21 – 24 March
2011, or go to www.zebra.com/zes

Zebra Enterprise Solutions, ZES GmbH, is the leading supplier of state-of-the-art

technology, providing hardware and software to locate, track, manage, and
optimize high-value assets, equipment and people. The real-time asset
management solution improves visibility and velocity of GSE equipment to gain
measurable business improvements.
ZES Fleet Management System optimises the GSE fleet at any airport
operation, monitors the location, displays the operational status, supports the
maintenance planning and is the basis for the fuelling strategy of the GSE units.

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 19

 WWW.AIRPORTINFRAEXPO.COM.BR
ORGANIZATION INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT

P E O P L E
Oliver Mathwich, at Air Astana, has
been promoted from Director Ground
Services to Vice President Service Delivery.
He will take charge of ground services,
catering and cabin crew, whilst retaining
responsibility for ground services contracts,
procurement and operations.
British Airways has named Nick Swift
CFO, with effect from March 2011. He will
replace Keith Williams.
The CEO of Sydney airport, Russell
Balding, has advised the Board of Sydney
airport that he will leave in early 2011 at the
conclusion of his employment contract.
Qantas announced in December the
appointment of Paul Yankson to the rôle of
Regional General Manager UK and Ireland.
Pierre Muracciole has been appointed as
Deputy CEO and Chief Financial Officer at
Servair. Separately, Antoine
Recher becomes Executive
Vice President, Human
Resources and Social Policy.
Athina Kapeni recently
joined Celebi Aviation
Holding as a Global Sales and
Marketing Director.
Christian Herzog has
Athina Kapeni replaced Patrick Roux as
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Appointments and promotions | February 2011
Senior Vice President Marketing for the Air
France-KLM group.
BBA Aviation has confirmed the
appointment of Mary Miller as VP, Industry
and Government Affairs for BBA Aviation’s
US operations.
Budget carrier easyJet has appointed
Warwick Brady Director of Operations,
replacing Cor Vrieswijk, who recently
resigned. Brady was formerly the LCC’s
Procurement Director. Separately, easyJet
recently appointed Trevor Didcock as
CIO.
Andreas Keller, VP Product
& Development Aviation
Security at Swissport’s
headquarters, has assumed
responsibility for all aviation
security activities (including
business development) for
the entire EMEAA region.
Etihad Airways, the
Andreas Keller national airline of the
United Arab Emirates, has
announced the appointment of Shaeb
Ahmed Alneaimi as its first Airport
Manager at Incheon International airport.
Tony Smith has joined Sharjah Aviation
Services as General Manager.
Nguyen Quang Son has been
appointed as the new Director of TIAGS.
At Cathay Pacific Tony Tyler is to
be succeeded by the airline’s Chief
Operating Officer, John Slosar.
With immediate effect, Bram Gräber
has been appointed Managing Director
of transavia.com, which is part of the
KLM Group.
At Virgin Atlantic Cargo, Nick Jones
has rejoined the airline as Regional Vice
President EMEA after spending three
years with Emirates in Dubai. Dominic
Jones, newly-appointed Regional Vice
President, Asia Pacific was formerly
Vice President, EMEA for Virgin Atlantic
Cargo.
Clive Sauve-Hopkins is the New
Operations Director for Swissport
UK; prior to the appointment he was
General Manager of Swissport UK’s
ground handling and passenger services
operation at Stansted.
Bruno Gehrig has been elected
Chairman of the Board of Directors
of Swiss International Air Lines, upon
the recommendation of the Swiss Air
Transport Foundation. He succeeds Rolf
Jetzer, who died in September 2010.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 21
RFID update
(From left to right): Martin Port, MD of Masternaut Three X; Frederic Dupeyron, Director General Hub Telecom; and
Christophe Guir, President Manustra.
Gallic groups
gain from RFID
Operation tracking and monitoring: the gains are real
enough, if these Parisian examples are anything to go by.
FID is an application that has
R
only quite recently come to
the attention of the ground
handler. Actually, that’s a
slightly misleading statement:
RFID has been promoted
to the aviation sector for a
good decade now, but in this
particular environment, timing
is all. And the aforesaid timing
hasn’t always been right.
Having admitted all that,
it’s encouraging to note, however, that several
handling companies have looked more closely
at the concept and what RFID brings to the
table. The oft-cited benefits in terms of fleet
management is an umbrella term: this splits up
into a myriad gains, notable amongst which are
those of GSE tracking and usage, as well as that
of monitoring vehicle status. There are plenty of
22 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
add-ons and, leaving cost aside, few would deny
the positive side of any RFID application.
Parisian success story
For the purposes of this feature we go to Paris
where Manustra, one of France’s leading airport
handling equipment supply and management
providers, has reported a 25-30% reduction
in fleet requirements for its customer bases.
This has been achieved through the use of
Masternaut’s Assist airport solution system.
This system enables Manustra to monitor and
control the logistics and maintenance status
of its GSE. It’s not confined to self-propelled
equipment either, for it encompasses tractors,
stairs, de-icers, cherry pickers, conveyers, GPUs
and buses.
At the time of writing, of its 1,500 or so
equipment items, some 200 have so far been
fitted with the Masternaut system and within
a single calendar year, Manustra has seen
significant optimisation and efficiency gains for
its customers, the biggest of which are Air France
and H Reinier.
Christophe Guir is President and CEO of
Manustra and he takes up the story.
“Using a tailored tracking and management
package, the Masternaut system gives us the
ability to make more efficient use of a smaller
number of assets. By keeping every piece
of equipment under control we can more
accurately determine when, where and for
how long each unit is deployed. Effectively,
this means we can pool the equipment and
customers can draw from a smaller but more
efficiently managed resource.”
The scale of operation at Charles De Gaulle
airport is as vast as it is complex: in terms of
aircraft and cargo handling movements, for
example, some 525,000 were recorded in 2009,
making it Europe’s busiest; and in terms of
passenger throughput, it is the second busiest
station, with nearly 58m travellers passing
through each year.
Full service strategy
Manustra has been evolving from being a basic
equipment rental and maintenance provider
to a complete resource and fleet management
control solution. In this way, Christophe Guir
aims to provide a comprehensive service which
matches equipment functions to customer
needs, while at the same time improving
efficiency. To that end, Masternaut Assist is
making a significant contribution.
“For example,” he continues, “an air start is
a very high value asset and therefore should
be deployed as frequently as possible to
maximise return on investment. Now, using
Masternaut Assist, we can focus more accurately
on timeframes and equipment location, which
enables ground handlers to deploy these units
with better control and to a greater number of
aircraft.”
Integral to the Masternaut formula in this
context is Masternaut’s sister company, Hub
Telecom, which is also headquartered in
Charles De Gaulle and which has long been
an established leader in the areas of business
telecommunications and goods traceability. Hub
Telecom has provided Manustra with biometric
access cards to all airport areas as well as the use
of airport mapping, which gives Manustra the
crucial real time data required to trace all aircraft
movements. Christophe explains further.
“Some of our 40 or so customers require
allocation resource, meaning they want to
pinpoint the location of their equipment at
all times. The Masternaut system tracks each
item of GSE and optimises the equipment to
be deployed. Once we know where the plane
will land, we can automatically allocate the
equipment to go to the correct gate.
“These decisions are usually taken ten minutes
prior to landing and, owing to the complexity
of the logistics involved, delays can often occur.
For example, passengers are often delayed while
waiting for stairs to be delivered. Masternaut
Assist will effectively make this a thing of the
past.”
It’s not hard to comprehend the solution:
by knowing the strategic location of GSE, that
which is nearest the point of need can be
mustered and quickly dispatched. Through the
 RFID update

shortest travelling distance GSE wear and tear is

reduced, fuel consumption is lowered and the
best possible use is made of the time available. Intelligent Drivesystems, Worldwide Services
Masternaut Assist employs a geo-fencing
facility that defines specific areas in which
the equipment should operate. When these
perimeters are crossed, an automatic alert
sends a report to the management system.
This enables the customer to analyse all GSE
movements and to rectify any inefficiencies on
an ongoing basis.
A further efficiency improvement is provided
by the system’s ability to monitor and record
all idling time. This tells the customer when
the equipment is actually being deployed and
means that he can optimise his productivity and
efficiency.

Millions of meals - to go
Servair, which is also based in Charles De Gaulle,
is owned by Air France and prepares and delivers
an average of 32,000 meal trays each day: that
equates to over 11m per annum.
With a 70% share of all catering provision at
CDG, Servair uses 275 company-owned trucks,
all of which are tracked and monitored to inform
both Servair and Air France of the exact moment
when each delivery takes place. Upon conclusion
of the catering operation, Air France handlers are
advised and passengers are allowed to board.
Precise monitoring of each aircraft’s catering
consignment (and there could be up to four
different menus for one aircraft) from despatch
to completion of delivery enables Servair to
maximise its own efficiency and to provide
instant information to Air France personnel,
thereby keeping passenger delays to a minimum.
Here too, Christophe is able to comment on the
operational benefits of the Masternaut system.
PERFECTION
“An additional part of the system is
Mastercold. Mastercold was developed to
monitor real time temperature control. In order
IN EVERY DETAIL
to monitor the fill levels and charge intervals of
each vehicle’s battery and to ensure that each is
given only the minimum amount of re-charge, a
FROM NORD
specific monitoring system has been developed.
This greatly increases the lifespan of the battery
and reduces electrical consumption. Air France We strive for perfection* with our drive solutions. Engi-
uses over 2,000 batteries and so the potential neering excellence from our own Technology Centers,
savings are significant.” working with international research partners and forums
Masternaut Assist, while optimising provides new developments and continuous improvement
operational and commercial efficiencies, of our products and system solutions.You can find out
also plays a key rôle in safety improvement. more about NORD DRIVESYSTEMS at www.nord.com.
Christophe continues: “Above all, safety is
our number one priority. Masternaut has * Modelled on nature: The buoyancy chambers of a nautilus shell always
enabled Air France and H Reinier to reduce its form a mathematically perfect logarithmic spiral.
small incident rate – whereby relatively minor
accidents occur through collisions – by 20%.
Fewer incidents mean improved safety, less Getriebebau NORD
equipment downtime and reduced costs. Also, 22941 Bargteheide, Rudolf-Diesel-Str. 1
the Masternaut Engine Management Unit has Fon: +49 (0) 45 32 / 4 01-0
been of great use here in helping to monitor and Fax: +49 (0) 45 32 / 4 01-2 53
correct individual driver behaviour.” info@nord.com
Manustra currently handles assets valued
at over ¤46m and employs over 100 people,
which gives an indication of the extent of the
operation.
He concludes: “Our objective is to combine
the best quality equipment and support service
with the highest standards of management
control. Only this way can we ensure continuous
improvement for our customers. I’m certain that
Masternaut and Hub Telecom will continue to
play a key rôle in achieving this.”

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 23

Industry interview
The team
player
Plane Handling’s boss explains the rationale behind
the company – and how the enterprise has coped
with the transformation from minor to major.
ugby and ground handling
have a lot in common. At
R least, that’s the opinion of
Rob Williams, who heads up
the London-based handling
company. It’s an analogy that
has much to commend it,
actually, for both activities
rely on good leadership,
discipline, team effort and,
occasionally, sacrifice. As
an ex-rugby player (and a
successful one at that, for in his formative years
Rob used to tour the world with the Felbridge
Rugby Club), Rob makes the comparison almost
on a daily basis.
Rob’s background to the aviation sector is
not, perhaps, as typical as most. “I started off as
a hod carrier in the building trade, actually,” he
says. “My father said one day that I really ought
to get a proper job but I asked why. He replied
that you don’t see any old builders… A while
later I remember arriving for work on a freezing
cold day to move some scaffolding poles only to
find that they were frozen into the ground. That
24 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
changed my mind about building as a potential
career.
“Two choices then cropped up: banking or
shipping. I opted for the latter but initially I did
little more than make the tea for a few months!
It was very old school, I recall – the sort of place
where brown shoes were frowned upon. In
retrospect, though, it was a great learning curve
for me.”
Rob subsequently left Newhaven for Gatwick
to work for Pandair, which was part of P&O. That
opened the door to aviation for he later took up
the post of Traffic Officer at Northwest Airlines.
“I looked after freight and reservations before
moving on to a sales rôle at Korean Air.
“After that, I was appointed Manager at Plane
Handling: that was 1989.”
At the time Plane Handling was a compact
little entity mustering just a dozen people,
working amid some big players in the handling
fraternity at Heathrow. An idea of the scale of
the operation (and how things have progressed
since) can be gleaned from the fact that Plane
Handling looked after Virgin at the time and
was processing 20 tons of cargo, or six to eight
pallets a day for the carrier: that figure (for Virgin
has remained a loyal client) now stands at 330
pallets a day.
“Looking back, we were unique because we
were the first ever off-airport handler. It was
exclusively cargo then, but within ten years we
were able to obtain a ramp licence at Heathrow.
Our first customers were Virgin and Cathay and
I’m proud to say that we’ve handled them ever
since.
“But you can’t sit on your laurels in this kind
of business: it’s constantly changing. What’s
helped us stay afloat? I like to think it’s been the
“can do” attitude that we’ve fostered. I know
that other handlers say the same, but we set
great store by dedicated teams. With Virgin, for
instance, the staff feel that they are as much a
Virgin employee as they are Plane employee and
I have absolutely no problem with that at all.
With our ramp teams, for the majority of their
time they are focussed on a specific carrier. That
way, we can give a more targeted service and we
understand the carrier’s requirements better, so
everyone wins.”
As related, Virgin is a significant customer for
Plane Handling, accounting for 20 or so flights
a day. Aside from Virgin, Rob’s enterprise looks
after the needs of Qantas, Singapore Airlines,
Air India, JAL, Emirates and Etihad - and it’s still
the only handler at Heathrow with accrued
experience in handling the A380. Reading the
carrier list, you might be tempted to assert that
Plane Handling specialises a bit – and is choosy
into the bargain. In that assumption you’d be
right.
“We do concentrate on wide body aircraft,
it’s true,” affirms Rob. “We look out for the
high end carriers and where they utilise similar
aircraft types, this of course helps us standardise
our GSE fleet and assists our ramp teams in the
turnaround.” Currently Plane offers ramp and/ or
passenger services to some 17 airlines and looks
after the cargo requirements for 40 plus airlines.
However, in terms of growth, things are quiet at
present.
“The number of contracts has been pretty
static for the last 12 months or so, although we
did sign up PIA and Iran Air in 2010. The reason
has been one of consolidation: after Dnata’s
purchase in late 2009, we’ve had a lot on our
hands. There has been the integration of 850
employees from Aviance, for one thing: we only
took on T3 and T4 staff, but it was a sizeable
number. Until this point we were a ramp only
cargo operator. Taking over the Aviance business
actually opened up the passenger services side
of the equation for us.”
When it comes to passenger processing,
Plane Handling is now one of the biggest
players at London’s main airport: no small feat
for a company that started out with a dozen
staff. So, with all this activity, integration and
consolidation, how does Rob sleep at night?
He smiles at the question. “I have a fantastic
team,” he replies simply. “This has been the
key to the whole changeover process. The
integration of the Plane Handling and Aviance
businesses has resulted in us merging together
two strong workforces: we’ve given them the
tools to do the job and they’ve got on with
it. There have been no union problems or
issues either, and that has helped enormously.
In fact, the unions have been very reasonable
and understanding and they can see the bigger

picture. We’re in a stage of consolidation; we
have worked closely with the Trade Unions;
there’s the Olympics around the corner and so
it’s important that there are no distractions. We
have agreed a three year pay deal which takes us
well beyond the games and allows us to focus
on the key business issues – our customers and
their needs.”
And what of that Dnata purchase? How has
that affected the operation?
“A year on from the Dnata purchase, things are
going well although aviation has had its ups and
downs in that time. We survived the volcanic
ash problems, for instance. On day one, it was
interesting to see an airport so quiet, but after
day five… mind you, hearing birds singing on the
ramp was a first.
“I’m delighted that Dnata picked us. They
saw that Plane Handling had made a name for
itself at Heathrow and that our reputation was
already established. Dnata has an interest in
many different sectors and the organisation has
an honest goal: it wants to be the best. They
are great to work with and they’re extremely
supportive, but it’s mostly behind the scenes.
We’re in touch two or three times a week
when needed and because of their operations
elsewhere in the world, there has even been
some crossover in terms of job opportunities.
Ultimately, Dnata wanted a safe pair of hands –
they wanted to make sure that we got the ball
and didn’t drop it.
“Was the transformation difficult? Not really.
We have a great leadership team, so every
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division of the company is involved. We have a
clear plan and the way ahead has already been
established. Of course, I don’t know everyone in
the company but I do make a point of getting
around the offices and the ramp. We’ve a very
open attitude; training is readily available, and
we have all the opportunities available, from
improving your driving skills to an MBA!” He adds
that the job on the ramp can be a dangerous
one and so it’s essential that the staff have the
right equipment and related training.
As if to underline the quality of the business,
Rob mentions that one of his tasks is that of
long service awards for staff. There are ten, 15
and 25 year awards and he says that currently
more and more staff are present at the
celebration buffets. It’s an unequivocal sign of
the staff’s loyalty – and contentment with the
company.
In line with the changes has been an ongoing
investment plan in equipment. Plane Handling
has on order 22 three pallet transporters, five
hi-lifts, three pushback tugs and additional de-
icing rigs. It is also involved in a comprehensive
refurbishment programme, although this has
nothing to do with the economic climate, Rob
stresses. “It was planned some time back,” he
explains, “and part of this will see an additional
five hi-lifts renovated ahead of this summer
season.”
Mention of de-icing begs the question about
Heathrow’s experiences during the recent spell
of bad weather.
“It was a challenge for us,” admits Rob. “I
Industry interview
mean, how could Heathrow close? There was a
runway open but the problem was the stands,
which weren’t cleared. We had icicles hanging
off a customer aircraft, I recall. And yes, it cost
us a huge amount of money, those two and a
half days of inactivity. The authorities knew the
snow was coming and it wasn’t a situation where
it was snowing continuously for a long period of
time, either. Seeing the Salvation Army outside
T3 serving tea and coffee to passengers is a sight
I guess the authorities would rather forget.”
Rob admits he is concerned about the details
of his organisation and is keen that it functions
smoothly. “After we absorbed the Aviance staff
into Plane Handling I remember walking into an
operations office only to find that they had no
kettle for a hot drink. We soon fixed that! Our
employees need decent facilities, which should
be adequately equipped: it’s fundamental to the
whole business – respect for your colleagues is
important.
“Overall, I’m really proud of what we’ve
achieved in the last 12 months.”
If there’s a success secret that Rob is willing
to divulge, then it’s a basic one. “You have to
treat your customers as individual customers
– recognising they are different. We do drop
the ball from time to time, I admit that, but
what’s important is how we recover it. Our
team approach is our strength, and our reliance
on each other is well understood: I want each
member of our team to play to the best of
their ability and to enjoy their time in the Plane
Handling family.”
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 25
GHI Conference 2010

Vienna conference biggest so far

he 12th annual GHI conference was a that the industry must improve ramp safety, and ideas
huge success and not even the snow were put to the panel to try to reduce the huge financial

T storms that swept across Europe on the

final day could dampen the spirits of the
delegates.
Over 470 from 63 countries attended
- a 20% increase on the 2009 attendance,
and this included a significant number
of international airlines who attended
to take advantage of the one-to-one
meetings organised for them on the
final day. With the conference theme
firmly focused on running the business, delegates were
able to hear key industry specialists analyse the ground
handling business arena and offer insights as to what may
lie ahead as the airline industry emerges from recession.
The CEOs’ debate on day one, moderated by Stephen
Sackur of the BBC, gave delegates the chance to question
some of the industry’s senior executives from airlines and
handlers, who understandably did not agree on all points
discussed. However, one topic that they all agreed on was
and human cost of ramp related accidents and incidents.
What is hindering accurate analysis of this problem is the
lack of data. In fact Dr Chris Smith in his presentation on
the first day, referred to the ground handling business “as a
data desert.” In an attempt to resolve this major problem
Ground Handling International and Dr Smith are joining
forces to survey the industry and to compile accurate
statistical information that can be shared and used to Angel Arrue, FLIGHTCARE GROUND
identify common problem areas when it comes to ramp SERVICES; Sergio Iniesta, GLOBALIA
safety matters, and to provide valuable benchmarking HANDLING / GROUNDFORCE; Ana
information the industry currently lacks. This survey will be Martinez-Atienza; Alejandro Gutierrez,
issued in the coming weeks so please find some time to ACCIONA AIRPORT SERVICES; Christian
participate in this important research. Hofmann, XL AIRWAYS GERMANY;
The photographs below show many of those delegates Inmaculada Martinez & Thomas Peake,
who attended; sadly a lack of space has prevented us GLOBALIA HANDLING / GROUNDFORCE
from including all the photographs taken during the four
day period. However, a complete file of photographs can
be found at www.groundhandling.com under the GHI
Conference tab.

David Kennedy, QUANTUM AVIATION

Suravudhi Kosoltrakul, Mrs Chanida,
Piti Ramasoot, Nakkamonphan (ART)
Shongporn & Mrs Kosoltrakul, THAI
AIRWAYS INTERNATIONAL
Aly Savadogo, RACGAE-BURKINA
HANDLING SERVICE; Melih Behar, DATA
FORM; Victor Bado, RACGAE-BURKINA
HANDLING SERVICE
Sadek Ebrahim & Phil Bowell, BAHRAIN
AIRPORT SERVICES; Ronan Mallaghan,
MALLAGHAN; Luc Deruyver, SKYWAY
AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY
SOLUTIONS; unknown; Don Hunter,
OMAN AIR; Hans Van Schaik, SACO
AIRPORT EQUIPMENT; Graham Keddie,
ABU DHABI AIRPORT SERVICES;
Christoph Papke, S-P-S GERMANY

Maria Rosaria Pisano, SEA
HANDLING; Jacques Natchia,
X OPS SODEXI; Alondra Lazo
Onell, LANCHILE- LINEA AEREA
NACIONAL CHILE
Scott Barber & Andy Cookson, AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE
SUPPORT SERVICES (AMSS); Peter O’Boyle, AVIANCE
ALLIANCE; Dick Bennett, AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE
SUPPORT SERVICES (AMSS); Peter Rowe, AER LINGUS;
Phil Bowell, BAHRAIN AIRPORT SERVICES
Kartal Ozcakir & Fatma Kasap
Yildirim, TGS TURKISH GROUND
SERVICES; Haktan Sarigenc &
Kursad Kocak, HAVAS GROUND
HANDLING CORPORATION
Ali Al-Shammary, SAUDI ARABIAN
AIRLINES; Klaus Pfeiffer, TREPEL AIRPORT
EQUIPMENT; Syed Riaz Ali, SHAHEEN
AIRPORT SERVICES (SAPS); Ibraheem
Alsabt, SAUDI ARABIAN AIRLINES

Ang Cheng Nam, Ong Tze Haung & Jukka Backlund, ISS AVIATION; Janis Barry D Nassberg, WORLDWIDE Jeannette Meyer; Amany Amer, LINK
Lek Hi Huak, CHANGI AIRPORT GROUP Balkens, NORTH HUB SERVICES; Jyri FLIGHT SERVICES (WFS); Stephen AERO TRADING AGENCY; Zach Tidy &
(SINGAPORE) Ketola, ISS AVIATION Sackur, BBC Simon Kensall, TUI TRAVEL

Martin Meyer, IAHA; Jeannette Meyer;
Michael J Hancock, SOUTHCORP AVIATION
HOLDINGS GROUP; Rene Schmalen, DELVAG
LUFTFAHRTVERSICHERUNGS; Wolfgang
Schmalen, LUFTHANSA GERMAN AIRLINES
See Seng Wan, CHANGI INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT SERVICES; S T Tan, BEIJING
AVIATION GROUND SERVICES; Jann
Eu, CHANGI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
SERVICES
Ian Mortemore, NASSAU FLIGHT
SERVICES; Vanetta Rodgers, AIRPORT
SERVICES (ANTIGUA); Alison Wilson;
Patrick Rollins, NASSAU FLIGHT
SERVICES
Innocent Mavhunga, NATIONAL
HANDLING SERVICES; Caleb
Mudyawabikwa, AVIATION GROUND
SERVICES; Henry Lasoi, TRADEWINDS
AVIATION SERVICES

26 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL

 GHI Conference 2010

Clement Woon, Joyce Ong & Alan Luc Meurrens, Samim Aydin, CELEBI
Tay, SATS AVIATION HOLDING; John Willis Jie Ji, AIR CHINA; Jacques Natchia
& Jean-Francois Bouilhaguet, X OPS
Erich Battagin, Marcello Calabrese & SODEXI; Chen Zhao, AIR CHINA;
Alessandro Pastorelli, ATA HANDLING Zhang Hong Kong, BEIJING AVIATION
SPA; Hans Radier, KLM SYSTEMS GROUND SERVICES
SERVICES

Laszlo Jakab, CELEBI GROUND HANDLING HUNGARY; Murat Nursel, CELEBI

GROUND HANDLING; Osman Yilmaz, CELEBI GROUND HANDLING HUNGARY;
Tunc Mustecaplioglu, CELEBI GROUND HANDLING; Rene Schmalen, DELVAG Glenn A Rutkowski, Kim Witton &
LUFTFAHRTVERSICHERUNGS; Talha Goksel, CELEBI GROUND HANDLING; Balint John P Vittas, WORLDWIDE FLIGHT
Stephanie Blevins, JET2.COM; Andy Kenderes, CELEBI GROUND HANDLING HUNGARY SERVICES (WFS); Wendy Vittas
Redmond, AIRBASE FLIGHT SUPPORT;
Andy Stuart, JET2.COM; Andy Cruise,
AIRBASE FLIGHT SUPPORT

Richard Montague, Keith Polkey Charles Ghanem, GATE; Sanguan

& Malcolm Skene, BAA HEATHROW Haisoke & Treephis Rodbundith, THAI
AIRPORT AIRWAYS INTERNATIONAL CARGO
Suleiman Yahyah & Senator Ike Antoine Maguin, TLD GROUP; Taiwo
Nwachukwu, NIGERIAN AVIATION Olayinka Afolabi, SKYWAY AVIATION
HANDLING COMPANY (NAHCO) HANDLING COMPANY

Vladimir Kirillin, MOSCOW AIRLINES; Christian Hofmann, XL AIRWAYS GERMANY; Daniel Burkard, MOSCOW Tony Goh, SATS; Per Utnegaard,
Gints Garins & Helena Rudusa, RIGA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT DOMODEDOVO; Michael Richter, NORTHERN CAPITAL SWISSPORT INTERNATIONAL; Stephan
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT; Anna Nayda, GATEWAY; Claudius Kuhnert, FRAPORT; Andrey Pislyakov, NORTHERN CAPITAL Beerli, MARKETING DYNAMICS; Georg
ROSSIYA AIRLINES GATEWAY; Ekkehard Franke, FRAPORT Langenberg, AMADEUS SAS

Jackie Keene, Marsha Ragusa & Concha Vera, SPANAIR; Jordi Raymond Dekkers, MARTINAIR HOLLAND; Annmarie Horne, MENZIES AVIATION;
Helen Armitage, BRITISH AIRWAYS Campderros, NEWCO AIRPORT SERVICES Michael Van Moorst, AIR FRANCE-KLM Karen Cox, EASYJET AIRLINE

Ion Stoica, Cristina Modirjac & Eugen Fatma Sancakli & Serdar Demir, TURKISH Thomas Suritsch, AUSTRIAN Mr & Mrs Talal Barka, AFRIQIYAH
Dumitrache, GLOBEGROUND ROMANIA AIRLINES CARGO AIRLINES; Joseph Suidan, IATA AIRWAYS

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 27

GHI Conference 2010
Vladimir Kirillin, MOSCOW AIRLINES;
Anna Nayda, ROSSIYA AIRLINES; Sergey
Katasonov, POLET CARGO AIRLINES,
Jose Manuel Guzman & Carlos Monzon,
AVIANCA SERVICES
Raef Abuharrous, SHOROOQ HANDLING
& GROUND SERVICES; Khalifa Azzabi &
Tareg Elsahli, GULF PEARL AVIATION
SERVICES; Saleh Alfarjani, SHOROOQ
HANDLING & GROUND SERVICES
Catherine Quenon, DNATA
SWITZERLAND; Vincent Gros, Jean Michel
Ivan, Patrick Humbert, Jaap van de Linde,
AIR FRANCE-KLM; Rudi Kandhai, KLM
ROYAL DUTCH AIRLINES; Christoph Tietz,
FRAPORT GROUND SERVICES AUSTRIA
Carlos Sanchez Diosdado, CLEVER
HANDLING SERVICES; Peter R Mayer,
SWISS INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES; Tali
Laufer Epstein & David Laufer, LAUFER
AVIATION - GHI
Albert Schrichte, DELTA AIR LINES;
Isabelle Devatine-Lacaze & Peter Esteie,
AIRBUS SAS
Alexey Kovalev & Alexander
Polygalov, JSC DOMODEDOVO AIRPORT
HANDLING; Andrey Tupitsyn, AIRPORT
MANAGEMENT COMPANY
28 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
Shraga Richter, EL AL ISRAEL Cyril Turner, DAL GLOBAL SERVICES;
AIRLINES; Irit Richter Michael Kirsch Marco Shoukry-Nessim & Magdy
Shoukry-Nessim, EGYPTIAN AVIATION
SERVICES (EAS); Amany Amer, LINK
AERO TRADING AGENCY; Dalia Elsissy
& Ashraf Gabr, EGYPTIAN AVIATION
SERVICES (EAS)
Ton Jochems, KLM CITYHOPPER;
Hans Radier, KLM SYSTEMS SERVICES;
Hans Van Schaik, SACO AIRPORT EQUIPMENT; Christoph Papke, S-P-S GERMANY; Monique van Tulder- Kuipers, ARKEFLY
Tom Bellekens & Donald Meulebroek, TCR INTERNATIONAL; Craig Smyth, MENZIES (TUI AIRLINES NEDERLAND); Rinaldo
AVIATION; Simon Houlahan, TCR UK Vels, MENZIES AVIATION
Norbert Klinghardt, CITY AIRPORT
Owen McKenna, MALLAGHAN; Kevin Tiziana Augliera, AVIAPARTNER ITALY; BREMEN; Samim Aydin, CELEBI AVIATION
Brown, MENZIES AVIATION; Adrian Jorge Bezelga, TAP PORTUGAL; Youri HOLDING; Carlos Navas, ACCIONA
Dunne, RYANAIR; Andy Boyd, MENZIES Busaan, PARIS VATRY AIRPORT; Armelle AIRPORT SERVICES; Angel Marcos,
AVIATION Marechal-Guichard, USIMAT-SERMEES FLIGHTCARE GROUND SERVICES
Ekkehard Franke, FRAPORT; Elisabeth
Landrichter, VIENNA INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT; Michael Richter, NORTHERN
Victor Picoto, Carlos Sequeira, Antonio Torres Pereira, Francisco Braganca & CAPITAL GATEWAY; Wolfgang Fasching,
Tania Meda, PORTWAY – HANDLING DE PORTUGAL; Charlie Anhut & Bob Hanson, VIENNA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
EVERGREEN AVIATION GROUND LOGISTICS; Denise Brewer & Dominique El Bez, SITA
Bob Gurr, BIDAIR SERVICES; Alondra Lazo Onell, LANCHILE- LINEA Radoslaw Gos, LOT SERVICES; Jose
Henrik Ambak, CARGOLUX AIRLINES AEREA NACIONAL CHILE; Paul Glover & M Llorente, IBERIA AIRLINES OF SPAIN;
INTERNATIONAL Peter Copley, ASIG & Radoslaw Paruzel, LOT SERVICES
Mike Firsowicz, DELTA AIR LINES; Oluwakemi Adigun, NIGERIAN CIVIL Brian McCormick, AIRPORT
Fernando Diaz Cisternas & Gustavo AVIATION AUTHORITY; Olubunmi Ereola TERMINAL SERVICES; John J C Itz,
Etchegaray, ANDES AIRPORT SERVICES Olugbusi, NIGERIAN CIVIL AVIATION QATAR AIRWAYS; Sally Leible, AIRPORT
(LAN AIRLINES ) AUTHORITY TERMINAL SERVICES
 Ramp safety awards 2010

WINNERS IN 2010
The Viennese Conference also saw the presentation of
the Ramp Safety Awards to four geographical regions.
Dinner, these latter receiving trophies for their good
work. Once again, our thanks are due to the sponsors
Voted for via an online procedure, the runners-up of the Safety Awards, who between them have
and overall category winners were named at the Gala underlined the importance of this event.

EUROPE THE FAR EAST & AUSTRALASIA

Laura Petrozziello, ARINC Christopher Meeking,

presents the trophy to Peter AVTURA congratulates
Copley, ASIG-AIRCRAFT SERVICE Kevin Brown, MENZIES
INTERNATIONAL GROUP Sponsor of Europe AVIATION Sponsor of Far East & Australasia

THE US, LATIN AMERICA & CANADA MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA

Michael Bloomfield, SAGE Christian Moller, SITA-

PARTS gives the 2010 award to WORKBRIDGE presents the
Glenn Rutkowski, WORLDWIDE Sponsor of US, Canada & trophy to Talha Goksel, CELEBI Sponsor of Middle East &
FLIGHT SERVICES (WFS) Latin America GROUND HANDLING Africa

Special thanks are also due to all our sponsors

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 29

The 13th annual GHI/ IGHC Golf Classic
Challenge
in Malaysia
Enrol today for this year’s golf tournament.
ermai in Malay means “serene
P
and beautiful” and anyone
who has played a round at this
course will really appreciate why
the club is thus named. The
design and construction also
reflect a desire to be at one
with nature, and this is reflected
in the wildlife that inhabit the
waterways and mature trees,
should you stray from the
immaculately kept fairways.
Since its opening in March 1998, Kota Permai
has captured the hearts and imagination of the
Malaysian golfing fraternity. Designed by an
Australian architect, Ross Watson, the intelligent
design is challenging yet fair, with playing options
for all levels of golfers. The layout features a
tantalising mix of straight holes and dog legs, while
scenic water hazards and sculptured bunkering
add form and challenge to play. To ensure
that a round of golf at Kota Permai is always a
rewarding experience, the lush Zoysia fairways and
undulating Tifdwarf greens are always maintained
to the highest standards.
Bearing testimony to Kota Permai’s status as
one of the great courses of Asia is its impressive
portfolio of international championships. In 1998
30 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
The GHI/IGHC event is hosted by
Sponsored by
it was chosen as the venue for the Volvo Masters
of Malaysia and the success of the tournament
prompted the title sponsors, Volvo, to make
Kota Permai the home of the Volvo Masters of
Malaysia for the next three years.
In 2002, the tournament was upgraded to the
Volvo Masters of Asia, the season-ending event
on the Asian Tour, but the venue remained the
same - Kota Permai. After a year’s absence, when
the tournament was played in Thailand, the
Volvo Masters of Asia returned to Kota Permai
in 2004. The club hosted the inaugural Asian
Nations Cup in 1999, which was the qualifying
event for the prestigious World Cup of Golf.
The World Cup qualifier has returned to Kota
Permai in the last three years, most recently as
the 2008 Fortis International Challenge and as
if this list of championship accreditations is not
enough, there’s the jewel in the crown: from
March 6-9, 2008, Kota Permai provided a worthy
battleground for the best golfers of the Asian
and European Tours in the US$2m Maybank
Malaysian Open.
So make sure you do not miss this great
opportunity to join us for the 13th annual GHI/
IGHC golf classic - sign up today!
Further details are available from Jean Ang:
e-mail jean@groundhandling.com
World analysis
Africa and the
Middle East
Overall, it would seem that 2010 wasn’t too
bad for the regions, with many respondents
reporting a busy ramp.
e start with North Africa,
where Swissport’s operation
W in Algeria looks to be
progressing well.
Swissport Algérie’s Fernand
Stauffer says that after gaining
major full ground handling
contracts, such as those of
Qatar Airways and Lufthansa,
this last year was mainly spent
on consolidating his business
and further expanding his
cargo warehouses, which now represent a
total of 4,500 square metres of covered space.
“We also contracted additional business during
the course of 2010 with Lufthansa Cargo,
Jetairfly, Air Berlin and TAP Air Portugal,” he adds.
Keeping up with the contracts has
necessitated some brand new GSE, which
included a lavatory truck, a water truck, a set of
passenger steps, four bag tractors, a couple of
motorised belts along with a highloader and a 40
ton pushback tractor. Despite the cancellation
of a few flights through the market downturn,
Fernand reports that contracts signed have more
32 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
than made up for the traffic dip.
“Training has been very high on the agenda
throughout the year, with a special focus on
human factors: all management and supervision
staff went through this training, in addition to all
employees directly in contact with passengers
and customers. This very thorough training has a
duration period of five days.
“Although not a big market, I’m sure that
Algeria will continue to enjoy a steady growth in
the years to come, both on the passenger side as
well as the freight side.”
Meanwhile in Kenya, Jeroen de Clercq says
that 2010 has again been a very successful year
for the Swissport operation there.
“Last year we renewed contracts with a
number of customers, securing more than
60% of our revenues for three or more
years. Moreover, we won contracts with
Air Madagascar in June, Turkish Airlines in
September, Air Cargo Germany in November
and British Airways World Cargo and Yemen
Airways in December. British Airways World
Cargo was delighted to be the first new
customer airline joining us in our new cargo
handling facility.”
The new 20,000 square metre cargo facility,
which was at the foundation stage when this
magazine visited Africa in late 2009, has since
been completed and is set to become a valuable
asset for the Kenyan operation. Swissport had
been operating at the airport’s Cargo Village
from an off-airside facility leased from the
Airport Authority. Being a former maintenance
facility, this warehouse was not purpose-
built for cargo handling and as a result, was
somewhat impractical. Despite the operational
shortcomings of this warehouse, Swissport’s
business developed quite successfully: between
2003 and 2009, cargo volumes handled by
Swissport grew by an average of 16% year-on-
year, way in excess of the industry average at
Jomo Kenyatta.
Of all the air cargo passing through the station,
about 80% is export cargo and 20% consists
of imports. The vast majority of export cargo
comprises perishable goods, mainly flowers. To
accommodate the handling of these perishables,
Swissport made a significant investment in
cold room facilities which are suitable for the
preparation of cargo for airlifting in temperature-
controlled areas and to store built-up units prior
to loading them on to aircraft. The total area
allocated to cold rooms within the complex
is 1,200 square metres, providing a capacity
equivalent to the loads of two Boeing 747
freighters at any one time. The building design
allows for these facilities to be expanded quite
easily in the future, should the demand increase.
Freight facility in Nairobi has boosted Swissport’s stock
 World analysis

Kenya imports a significant amount of

pharmaceuticals, especially vaccines. In
consequence, the cold room facilities of the
complex will also have dedicated storage
facilities for these specialist products.
“On the ramp, we more or less completed
the renewal programme that we embarked on
about four years ago and there was no need for
much addition in 2010. Our investments were
limited to the replacement of two tow tractors,
a pallet/ container transporter and a ramp
vehicle. In 2011, we expect delivery of additional
ramp equipment to cater for the handling of
full freighter aircraft. On the cargo side, we have
invested heavily in new equipment, alongside
the investment in our new cargo handling facility,
which was opened in November 2010. Apart
from fixed equipment in the warehouse, we Gabon celebrated 50 years of independence in 2010 and Handling Partner Gabon invested accordingly
invested in GSE: this included five fork-lifts and
four slave pallet transporters.” challenging year. With the opening of our new with Libreville to its Johannesburg route, with
Jeroen admits that whilst cargo levels dipped cargo complex we have raised the bar in terms five flights a week. RAM has also been busy. As
during the last 12 months, there has since been a of facilities and quality. The response from the for flights to Europe, there was nothing new
healthy rebound, so that the second half of the market has been very positive so far and we from Air France but Lufthansa modified its
year atoned to a great extent for the first. expect to continue growing our business as we Frankfurt-Accra-Libreville schedule and upgraded
There were no major developments in the move forward.” the aircraft to give an alternative to that of Air
area of training. “We appointed a new Training France: we believe that Lufthansa sees Africa as a
and Quality Manager in September 2010, who Good in Gabon golden opportunity.
succeeded her colleague, who moved to For Handling Partner Gabon, the last 12 “We invested in a set of VIP stairs for the
head up our Customer Services department. months have been good, declares Jean-Michel fiftieth anniversary of Gabon’s independence
Recruitment and training remains a labour- Schweitzer, the company’s Managing Director. and bought a pair of brand new GPUs from
intensive exercise but we have no real problem “With the arrival on the market of ASKY TLD, plus some secondhand T135 Charlattes and
finding suitable and qualified people who want (monitored by Ethiopian Airlines), Air Nigeria beltloaders.”
to join us. (formerly Virgin Nigeria) expanded its flights with Recruiting staff that can be trained up is still
“I feel that 2011 will be another exciting and good load factors whilst SAA attached Douala proving difficult, though, which is mainly due

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World analysis
Virgin reaffirmed its commitment to Ghana – and Aviance Ghana secured the contract
to the non-English speaking populace. “When
you think about this sort of career, even a man
starting with the lowest job on the ramp has the
possibility of going as far as the supervisory level
– but this language handicap is a real hurdle.
“Gabon is changing slowly but remains very
expensive in terms of taxes and labour law. The
future lies in the government’s hands.”
Aviance Ghana’s Paul Craig reckons that the
preceding 12 months have seen good growth for
Ghana, with several major carriers choosing to
operate flights there.
“Aviance Ghana has been fortunate in
securing new contracts with United Airlines,
Virgin Atlantic Airways and Egypt Air,” he says.
“United was set to go double daily, with effect
from December, as the Washington flight will
continue to Lagos. Interest in Ghana remains high
as the oil industry begins to take off, bringing
with it many allied support companies. The cargo
business is also slowly recovering and predictions
for 2011 remain positive.”
For his operation Paul invested in a pair
of Cobus 3000 buses, two sets of covered
towable steps, TUG tractors, multi-functional
pallet trailers, electric forklifts and a specialised
cargo stacker as well as three-wheeled baggage
tow trucks. “In 2011 we have Board approval to
purchase two additional Cobus 3000, two more
GPU units and an ambulift,” he notes.
For those seeking words of wisdom on
running a station, Paul has this to say: “We
maintain a close watch on our operational
costs and the Aviance alliance enables us to
benchmark and measure our performance
through ongoing collaboration with other
alliance members. We are able to look at many
areas, ranging from maintenance and running
costs to sickness and absenteeism, all of which is
helping us to remain competitive. We have also
begun using the Avtura RATT application, which
measures both turnaround performance and
assists in our invoicing to ensure we do not miss
revenue streams. During 2011 we hope to trial the
Zebra product so that we can gain a much better
understanding of GSE usage.
“Recruiting staff with previous experience
is limited, so training plays a great rôle in our
being able to offer our customers a high level
of service. During the previous 12 months
we opted to develop in-house training for a
34 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
number of disciplines, ranging from aircraft
cleaning to passenger handling and customer
care. Being able to offer training in-house allows
us to build on consistent messaging and to
be able to react quickly should staff require
additional support. We have IATA approved
DGR trainers and Amadeus trained staff for
check-in training. By having this capability we
can take previously untrained staff and nurture
the Aviance proposition of Your style Our smile.
We are also able to collaborate with our alliance
friends to ensure our training standards are truly
international.
“A look into the crystal ball would be very
useful but Ghana does seem to be on course
for continued growth as the emerging oil
production generates many associated new
entrants. Cargo is an area where we expect to
see steady growth and the long-awaited promise
of Ghana becoming a West African hub.”
Forsyth Black, speaking on behalf of Menzies,
says that his big wins last year were with Emirates
in Dakar, as well as Turkish and Air Namibia
A tightening of the corporate belt has helped Menzies’
operations in the African continent
in Accra. “Our Amman operation is about to
announce a significant new contract also. In
South Africa, the focus has been on renewing
our contract portfolio, a drive which has shown
very pleasing results and which will ensure the
stability of our business for the future. A number
of major airlines have recommitted to great
service from Menzies for some years to come,
I’m happy to report.”
A tight rein on operational costs and the
ability to relocate GSE from one station to
another gave Menzies a year in which little
significant investment took place in terms of
equipment. Forsyth feels that 2011 will see the
handler making more purchases, however.
The downside has been the roller-coaster
ride that has exemplified the recession. “We’ve
experienced some airlines cancelling flights
almost at will and then adding them back as
loads improved. We’ve flexed our labour to
match as best we can - and in some stations
that’s not an easy trick to pull off. Of course,
South Africa hosted the FIFA World Cup where
we had entirely the opposite effect for the
months of June and July, where airlines added
flights at will and once again, we adapted our
operations and labour force to match.”
Forsyth adds that Menzies has taken the
opportunity of some staff downtime during the
recession to ensure that personnel training is
right up to date and that the handler has spent
quite a lot of money in this area. “We believe
that investing in our most important resource –
our people – will pay dividends in the long term,”
he asserts.
“Ahead, it seems the worst of the recession is
over, and that business is finally picking up again.
All the signs are there and we can only hope it’s
a strong and sustained recovery. There are signs,
too, that some in the market are struggling and
competition is fierce and at times desperate.”
Team effort?
Football is what Bob Gurr at BIDAir remembers
most about 2010…
“The past year has been dominated,
unsurprisingly, by the soccer World Cup and
planning for this huge event filled the first half
of the year. The actual event was one of frenetic
paced handling for a period of six weeks, with
many charter flights operated by companies not
normally seen in South Africa requiring servicing.
Dealing with so many new entities from different
parts of the world with very varied operational
requirements was a major learning experience for
our operational staff.
“The other main highlight for BIDAir Services
has undoubtedly been the introduction of A380
flights by both Air France and Lufthansa, We
are now, unquestionably, the most experienced
A380 handler in Africa!
“April 2010 brought with it a handling contract
for Jet Airways operating from Chhatrapati
International with A330 equipment. Atlas
Air commenced B747 freighter operations
in their own right during October and we
were successful in acquiring this business.
We have also been able to extend our value-
added business offerings during this period.
New business lounges have been opened in
Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. We have
also been successful in retaining our existing
client base in the past year.
“Even with the additional pressure of the

Handling the A380 a big event for BidAir
World Cup, we have been able to effectively
utilise our GSE and have not needed to invest in
any additional equipment. It is anticipated that
there will be some GSE purchases during 2011,
with more significant investment from 2012.”
Bob adds that because of the impact of the
downturn in the aviation industry, an extensive
review of his operational structures has been
undertaken, which has resulted in some changes
that will ensure improved efficiencies without
impacting the level of service delivery.
“Staff training is a major investment for us, as
turnover in some areas is as high as 20% a year,
which means that regulated and operational
training is required on an ongoing basis. It is also
of critical importance for both us and our clients
that our staff training levels are maintained
at a consistently high level. Recruitment of
suitable staff is not a particular issue in South
Africa; retaining skilled staff is, however, another
Do you need
Handling in South Africa?
B0809/12257/2363
PROUDLY
question altogether!”
Ultimately, Bob remains philosophical
about the future – and ends with an intriguing
comment.
“Airlines continue to look for value for money
and the South African handling arena is no
exception. This may result in some changes in
the coming year. There is no doubt that it is not
merely enough to consistently deliver high levels
of service to retain a market share.”
At Mwanza Ground Handling in Tanzania,
Ibrahim Mustafa was happy to divulge that in
his quest for growth his operation has been
licensed by Tanzania Civil Aviation so that he
has access to Grade 1 airports in Tanzania. He is
looking forward to operations at Julius Nyerere
and Songwe airports after winning the Airport
Authority’s concession.
The Middle East
Jon Conway at Dnata relates that his operation
in the Middle East is going from strength to
strength.
“As we end the third quarter of the 2010-11
financial year, we can report on a generally
strong 12 months. Movements have increased
10% year-on-year, although we have seen some
carriers again changing aircraft gauge to better
match demand. Dnata Dubai was, very recently,
awarded the Ground Handling Provider of the
Year 2010 in the Middle East at the recent ITP
Aviation Business Awards and we are justifiably
delighted, as it recognises the tremendous hard
work of our front line teams.”
“the answer,...no question!”
7YV]PKPUNX\HSP[`NYV\UKOHUKSPUNZLY]PJLZ[VTVYL
[OHUHPYSPULZVWLYH[PUNÅPNO[ZHTVU[O
World analysis
Good, solid progress for Dnata
New airlines added to Dnata’s portfolio
included Air Berlin with three flights a week;
RwandAir, also with three flights a week and Nas
Aviation, which has contracted for eight flights a
week with an A320/ A319.
“We have increased, or will increase, our GSE
inventory this financial year,” he adds. “This will
involve a mixture of GSE types, including lower
deck loaders, ACUs, GPUs, TSUs and aircraft
washing units, as well as non-mechanised GSE.”
He relates that the operation has witnessed a
significant upturn in the fortunes of many airlines
and the annual passenger and cargo throughput
figures soon to be published by Dubai Airports
will demonstrate the strength of the recovery.
“Dnata takes great pride and delight in one of
the most recent developments within the area
of training and development for its staff. This
is the delivery and commissioning of a next
generation aircraft pushback simulator. This
Tel: +27 11 383 9420
Fax: +27 11 823 6349
marketing@bidair.co.za
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 35
World analysis
innovative simulator enables the trainee to
operate the pushback under various weather
conditions such as rain, sandstorms and
low visibility, as well as on different aircraft
types. The most notable benefit of the
simulator is that the trainee can practise the
pushback operation as many times as they want
until they are confident, which is not possible
when it comes to live aircraft that are not always
available.” Jon believes that this device will be
the first of its kind within the region and indeed,
the world, and will further enhance the learning
experience for the trainee. There is plenty of
local labour looking to work at the station, so
recruitment is not a problem in Dubai; he also
looks overseas on occasion.
“The industry is clearly revelling in a
robust recovery, with both passenger and
cargo loads looking healthy. We do, however,
know from bitter experience that the market
is constantly evolving and we must not become
complacent. Regionally, we see an aggressive
market and one in which our competitors are
hungry for market share.
“Over the coming months there will be
abundant opportunities for us to continue
the trend of Dnata’s excellence. Dubai World
Central - Al Maktoum International airport has
opened an exciting new chapter in aviation
within the UAE, paving the way for a new era
of unconstrained growth, with its associated
opportunities and challenges.
“Looking at Dubai International airport and
the phenomenal growth here, simply keeping
pace with the incredible Emirates and flydubai
expansion continues to be a challenge in itself.
With a recent order for more A380s, B777s and
with the new aircraft being delivered regularly,
Dnata Airport Operations in Dubai continues
to be under pressure to ensure the hub works
efficiently and seamlessly.
“To keep pace with the ever-changing
business environment and to offer
our customers superior service at a
competitive price, Dnata has recently
completed an extensive organisational
restructure. We have embarked on a top to
bottom review of all our business processes as
we intend to become globally recognised as
industry leaders.
“So, with exciting times ahead, Dnata
enters 2011 with a solid foundation. We will
remain focused on the things we do well;
use technology and creativity to improve
productivity; provide excellent service and
most of all, continue to trust in our people, as
together we will drive Dnata’s success.”
And on to another success story: according
to Samir Sursock, at MEAG in the Lebanon, the
past year has also been good for the company,
which saw growth in excess of 20%. New
contracts were signed with Air Baltic, Pegasus,
Air Germania and Air Arabia Egypt, he relates.
Despite the extra business, MEAG abstained
from expenditure in GSE during 2010 although it
intends to rectify that situation in 2011.
MEAG’s efforts last year were mainly focused
on enhancing on-the-job training for new
recruits: to that end it developed elaborate
training plans for all functions and organised
workshops for familiarising trainers and coaches
with the procedures.
Samir mentions that recruitment of qualified
staff for his operation is not a problem and that
36 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
MEAG posted growth figures of 20% in 2010
demand is high.
“The cargo market is expanding fast,” he
concludes, “and MEAG is therefore planning to
expand its facilities to be ready to accommodate
more cargo and to provide suitable areas for all
sorts of special cargo.”
Expansion and consolidation
According to Hassan El Houry, CEO of
National Aviation Services, it’s been a period
of expansion and consolidation. For a start,
several new contracts were signed in Kuwait,
including United, flydubai and Mihin Lanka.
Moreover, a joint venture with Celebi in India
has brought more than ten new contracts and
Hassan mentions BA, Swiss and Lufthansa in
this context. The Western region tender has
involved Pune, Ahmedabad and Goa, whilst
opening at Khartoum has so far added flydubai
and Ethiopian to the tally. No carriers were lost
during the review period.
Hand in hand with all these new contracts
has been the necessity for GSE investment.
“We spent over US$1m in Kuwait, about double
that in India and a further US$1m in Khartoum,”
he says. “With our GSE, we’re coming up to a
time where some requires replacement and
this is an ongoing programme. We’re also able
Contracts with Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian secured early on in 2010 gave Laufer Aviation a useful boost
to move GSE around stations where required.
Although we source globally, we’ve noted that
some locally-manufactured equipment is now
on a par with GSE made elsewhere. Because
we serve many quality carriers we tend to deal
with the market leaders when it comes to GSE.
Electric GSE is purchased, though this is more
down to personal reasons rather than any
legislation. Shipping cost is a big factor in the
final decision-making process.”
Last year, NAS renewed its ISAGO
certification in Kuwait and there were zero
findings, a testament to the quality of the
handling operation. Plans are currently afoot to
roll out ISAGO to the rest of the network.
“Kuwait saw 8m passengers last year and
we have the majority of the US and European
carriers, and all the low cost traffic,” he
continues. “Aside from this has been the
phenomenal growth in the Indian market, which
has brought plenty of challenges.” As Hassan
remarks, the country will require much network
support as its aviation sector blossoms – and
the implementation of the country’s ground
handling policy is likely to keep handlers on
their toes.
Africa is another area currently under the
NAS spotlight: in January this year it opened
in Sudan and the CEO hints that three more
airports will be added before the summer. In
addition, the handler is looking to start up at a
further two bases in the Middle East. As might
be expected, finding talented personnel to
keep up with all this growth hasn’t been easy –
but NAS has managed to recruit successfully.
“We’re building on quality now,” concludes
Hassan.
Growth in Israel
“Generally speaking, 2010 was a positive year for
Laufer Aviation – GHI. The company has enjoyed
a significant growth in its customer portfolio
leading, of course, to a subsequent growth in
traffic handled.”
These are the words of Tali Laufer, who goes
on to say that at the beginning of 2010 the
handler won an important tender for ground
handling services in Tel Aviv, with Lufthansa,
Swiss and Austrian Airlines the clients. “By
winning the tender, the company has maintained
Lufthansa as a customer and won Swiss and
Austrian as new customers. During the year
 World analysis

Laufer Aviation – GHI was also nominated to Novair, Spanair and Iberworld - and we are
handle the new scheduled operation by Aegean constantly striving to meet and exceed our
and Spanair to Tel Aviv and has therefore customers’ expectations of quality and pricing.”
become the main Star Alliance handler in Israel.” In terms of the international situation, Link
Another significant growth in activity was Agency has continued its successful business
recorded when El Al started operating domestic in global flight support services by developing
flights to Eilat airport in the south (thrice daily) a wide network of communications with civil
and nominated Laufer Aviation – GHI as its aviation and airport authorities in countries within
handling company for this operation, challenging Africa, the Middle East and the Far East, as well as
the company to start up from scratch a full Central and South America.
handling station in Eilat with very little lead time. “We have built a very strong foundation of
Tali adds that the company also participated reliable relationships in these regions and have
in (and won) the Air France/ KLM/ Alitalia enriched our database of contacts to assist
tender and thereby managed to maintain all A TUI contract in Jordan aided Link Agency last year in providing airlines with all required handling
three carriers as its customers, thus remaining services and representation. Traffic rights are also
the leading Skyteam handler in Tel Aviv. She Link in the chain presented through a round-the-clock system of
reports that no customers were lost during 2010 Marwa Laz, Link’s Senior Business Development integrated, creative and punctual teams, serving
and that the foregoing positive developments Co-ordinator, says that in addition to winning short notice and emergency flights.
assisted in mitigating the negative occurrences the TUI contract in Jordan, the company is “For 2011, Link Agency’s vision is to grow in the
of 2010, namely the severe dollar/ local currency now serving the whole TUI group of airlines international market and spread around the world
fluctuation (that had a negative effect on at Jordanian airports. “We are the official with the opening of more, permanent branches.
income) and the cancellations incurred by the representatives of many airlines, including This is in addition to enhancing the quality of
volcanic ash (even though this was much less Transavia.com, Adria Airways, Air Italy, Aeroflot, service aimed at fulfilling all our customers’ needs.”
dominant in Israel compared to other parts of
Europe).
“In order to meet the growth in our portfolio
and traffic and maintain the high level of service,
in 2010 our company invested nearly U$1m in
the purchase of new and advanced Goldhofer
pushback tractors, some ACUs and GPUs, an
ambulift vehicle and green electric cars for the
ramp.
“The recession has required us to constantly
review our economic costing models for the
operation and has forced us to closely scrutinise
the operation to ensure its adherence to our
costing structures,” she adds.
In conclusion, Tali says that the most
significant factor when it comes to recruitment
is the economic atmosphere at the relevant
time. “During the recession experienced in
2009, recruitment was a much easier task;
but we have been experiencing an ongoing
challenge to recruitment following the financial
recovery which started during 2010, as a
natural result of the growth in demand for
the employees with the characteristics we are
looking for. Our greatest challenge is the need
to remain innovative and enticing in order to
attract potential employees. As far as training
is concerned, we are adjusting our syllabus and
methods several times a year to address the
ever-changing requirements of the aviation
world. Obviously, the most notable change
is the growing emphasis of training on safety
issues.”
Following the successful global expansion
in Africa and Middle East, Link Aero Trading
Agency has established a strong presence in
Jordan, where it has been covering all Jordanian
airports. Link Aero Trading Agency Jordan has
rapidly become a comprehensive aviation
services company, providing a wide array of
services to meet its clients’ demands.
Link Agency provides representation before
the Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority, and
is able to supply necessary permissions for
traffic rights, which includes landing, parking,
housing and over-flying. Moreover, through
a well-trained staff Link Agency is able to
provide ramp and passenger supervision. This is
in addition to arranging for crew handling and
hotel accommodation, special VIP treatment,
fuel provision and catering supplies.

GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 37

Ground handling liberalisation
$GHÀQLWHPD\EH"
Is it finally the moment for addressing the question of amendments
and revisions to the EU Ground Handling Directive?
t’s that time again.
Over a decade has passed
I since the much-lauded
Directive 96/97 first saw
light of day. The EU Directive
96/67 was seen as something
of a godsend by some, a
curse by others - and even
a matter to be conveniently
overlooked by certain
parties around Europe.
Nonetheless, Brussels’ finest
bit of legislation, designed to even out the
handling playing field, improve competition at
airports and give carriers more choice in their
handling agents, has done much to enhance the
liberalisation of the handling market.
But…
But it was never perfect. Some would argue
that it never was going to be perfect. On that
basis, it was only a question of time before
revisions and updates would be on the agenda.
After one or two false starts it finally happened
and a Public Consultation document was
published in 2010, based on feedback from a
broad range of organisations, public authorities
and EU Member States; moreover, there was
no little feedback from outside of the EU, too,
illustrating, perhaps, the interest that has since
been engendered by the original proposals.
A number of bodies was consulted, including
airlines and airline organisations, handlers
and handling associations, airports and allied
associations; as well, there were replies from
governments, trade unions and sundry other
organisations. Looked at in detail, the fraction of
respondents who were based in the EU totalled
some 70% of the replies received. Perhaps
predictably, the non-EU replies were primarily
from Swiss companies and Swiss associations.
We present here a selection of the more
relevant subjects raised in this long-overdue
Consultation.
Sub-contracting
An early question related to the issue of sub-
contracting, and whether this was thought
advantageous – and whether specific rules
should be introduced to help this facet of the
industry.
It was generally agreed (by Member States, at
least), that sub-contractors should have standard
conditions in order to guarantee the level of
the service supplied. However, some countries
took an opposite view: Belgium, for example,
was against the idea of sub-contracting by
self-handlers whilst Poland suggested that not
more than one level should be permitted. Some
Member States declared that overly precise rules
would actually discourage competition between
handlers.
38 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
For their part, airline associations felt that
restricting sub-contracting would inhibit handling
activities. One respondent felt that sensitive
services ought not to be sub-contracted whilst
maybe only two or three activities should at
most be hived off in this manner. IAHA also
believed that self-handlers should not sub-
contract. Whilst sub-contracting per se was
endorsed by most, airport associations did
express concern over the practice. Handlers,
overwhelmingly, believed that there should be
common rules on sub-contracting for peace of
mind – and they echoed other respondents’
comments in terms of self-handling. Overall, the
replies suggest that common measures for sub-
contracting would be advisable although some
parties did not share this view.
Quality measurement
Something of a sticky, not to say sensitive,
subject this, but nonetheless one that has to be
faced up to within the sector. In the absence
of no minimum quality requirements for staff,
quality controls, environmental protection and
safety within the existing Directive, should this
material be added – and what would be the best
way forward?
Member States were unequivocal, saying
that more definite quality standards would
be beneficial to the sector as a whole. Whilst
some countries (France and Italy, for example)
already have in place certain mechanisms, others
do not. Interestingly, regional government
stakeholders were opposed
to the implementation of
EU standards in this respect: ´VXEFRQWUDFWRUV
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regulations were already VKRXOGKDYH
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measures ought to be the
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Airline associations LQRUGHUWR
concurred, saying that no
further EU regulation was JXDUDQWHH
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quality standards should be WKHOHYHORI
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this context.
Whilst most of the airlines proper were
equally against further EU regulation in this
area, those who thought such measures worthy
of adoption pointed out that an enhanced
harmonisation and control of the ground
handling process would be the net result.
As for handling company associations, IAHA
noted that further regulation could well result
in a conflict of interest between client and
provider and distort competition. Handlers
themselves were happy to see the introduction
of quality standards for training and safety
purposes, assuming this was effected at all
airports. Independent handlers sided against
the possibility of more powers devolving to the
airport, arguing that where airports handled, this
would lead to potentially untenable situations. In
summary, there was a divergence of views: some
felt that quality standards were best worked
on at local level whilst others believed that it
was through IATA that standards could best be
achieved. Whilst an overarching EU framework
was not discounted, there was no need for high
level involvement in the detail.
Working conditions
Another thorny (or at least potentially thorny)
issue was that of workers’ rights. Current legislation
ensures protection for workforces but this can
vary from state to state. Staff transfer, likewise, can
be a minefield. Should, therefore, the Directive be
amended to introduce measures aimed at helping
staff in transfer situations?
Several Member States declared that they would
like to see more worker protection legislation – and
that companies should have an obligation to take
over existing staff. How to improve the working
conditions brought up an array of suggestions:
collective agreements, dialogues, staff certification
and even European standards were all mentioned.
For their part, airlines felt that staff transfer and
working conditions were outside the scope of the
Directive and these decisions
were down to national
and current EU regulations.
Airports also believed that
current EU legislation was
adequate in this respect and
that no special arrangements
were necessary for the
handling sector.
As for the handling
companies themselves,
opinion here was very
mixed: some would like to
see a uniform agreement
whilst others said that the
Member State’s own laws
should encompass this
area. Tellingly, most of the
workers’ organisations and
trade unions came down strongly in favour of
amendments to the existing proposals on this
subject. Minimum wage, training, social protection
and minimum staff provision were all elements
that required consideration but not all respondents
were convinced that change was required. It was
also noted that uncertainty existed over where
current regulations were applicable in the case of
companies being taken over.

Airline representation at airports
As readers will know, airlines have no obligation
to have representatives present at every station
to which they fly. The question posed asked
whether this ought to be changed; in particular,
could a ground handler legally represent a
carrier?
Perhaps not surprisingly, a majority of Member
States felt that airline representation would be
beneficial for passengers, especially at times
when luggage is mis-routed or delayed. However,
some Member States argued that this would
cause extra cost whilst others felt that the
current situation was adequate.
Airline association respondents supported
representation through an accountable
body although it was noted that it might be
impractical to implement this at all stations;
likewise, it was not felt that handlers were a
totally credible alternative in the absence of a
proper representative. Airlines also believed that
staffing each station was not a viable option,
based on the grounds of the investment that
would be required.
Handling companies’ associations as well as
handling companies proper were in accord that
airlines ought to have their own representatives
at airports; but where a handler might be
required to fulfil this rôle, then the extent of the
latter’s liability had to be spelled out.
Overall, there was only a small amount of
support for the idea that airlines ought to man
all their network stations. Whilst a number of
respondents believed that such representation
could be safely passed on to the handler, the
handlers voiced their concerns over the extent
of their ultimate liability.
Safety and security:
problems encountered
Had those surveyed experienced any safety or
security problems that could be linked to the 1996
Directive?
There was a mixed response here, with some
Member States declaring that no adverse
experiences had surfaced whilst others pointed
to the need to train staff more thoroughly; for
Ground handling liberalisation
enhancing ramp worker identification protocols;
and the need for better language training to avoid
miscomprehension.
Airlines, for their part, saw no link between the
original Directive and any deterioration in safety
standards. In stark contrast, airport associations
pointed to a reduction in quality and a palpable
increase in minor ramp incidents. Mention was
made of outdated GSE,
less worker supervision
and complicated access “IAHA also
arrangements to secure areas.
Airports themselves brought highlighted
up three matters for attention.
Short term contracts and
safety and
a high staff turnover were
becoming commonplace, with
security
the knock-on effect of lower concerns,
qualifications and experience,
which was adversely affecting pointing to
passenger safety and security.
With more organisations increased
and staff present at a typical
airport had come more
levels of ramp
security checking and more
passes. Finally, airports referred
congestion”
to the subject of more staff
on the ramp, which enlarged the likelihood of an
accident or incident.
IAHA also highlighted safety and security
concerns, pointing to increased levels of ramp
congestion and the ongoing pressure on quick
turnarounds. These thoughts were shared with the
handling companies, although some declared that
there were sufficient mechanisms in place to cope
with this situation.
Recommendations included independent
reporting on the level of ramp incidents, better
management of GSE to avoid congestion and more
oversight of security passes.
Contract length
Something of an old chestnut, this, but nonetheless
one that is continually brought out in conversations
relating to the profitability of the ground handling
operation per se.
So… should contract lengths be extended? You
might be forgiven for thinking that all the parties
polled would be staunchly behind this – and
indeed, the majority were. However, France and
Italy took an opposing viewpoint here, arguing that
shorter contracts would improve competition and
permit the introduction of new entrants to the
marketplace.
Airlines believed that lengths of seven to ten
years would be admirable although the responses
indicated that a minimum,
rather than a maximum
term, would be preferable:
that would pave the way for
further market liberalisation.
Airports, as well as airport
associations, were behind the
idea of an extension in years in
this context: they saw better,
longer-term investment on
the part of the handler arising
from such a circumstance. A
more stable environment was
in everyone’s interest, it was
felt. However, there was some
concern that overall, reduced
efficiency and quality in the
marketplace might occur,
since the ground handling
market might become less responsive under
such conditions. Would flexibility suffer? some
wondered.
A majority of handlers welcomed any contract
extension for reasons that will be well-known to
readers. Comments included the fact that GSE
is depreciated over a period of nine years, so
an extended contract was in the handler’s best
interest; and there was a suggestion that licences
should not all have the same maturity date. Despite
all the encouragement, two handlers saw no value
in lengthening current contract terms.
Finally, the union respondents believed that this
kind of change was very much in the employee’s
favour.
The Airport User Committee
The AUC has a consultative part to play in the
tender process, which includes technical matters and
standards. Currently, though, there is no obligation
to justify why a recommendation is not followed.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 39
Ground handling liberalisation
The question, then, was one of what needed to
be done to ensure the airport user’s preference is
better taken into account.
Airlines believed that the AUC should have a
key rôle in the selection of handlers and that any
opinions voiced that were contrary should be
justified. Reference was also made to the desirability
for strict separation of airline representation in cases
where these bodies are involved in ground handling
activities.
Airport associations were of the opinion that the
AUC must remain a consultative body – but agreed
that any decision not to follow its recommendations
ought to be justified. Airport respondents stated
that in general terms they were
quite happy with the current
AUC situation – but a number “Both airlines
were concerned about giving
the user more power than it and airline
had at present.
Handling company
associations
associations were more
concerned about the
opposed any
transparency of the whole attempts
decision-making process
than the AUC’s actual status; to limit the
and handlers were keen not
to give the AUC any more level of self-
power than it had, since this
could translate into a conflict
handling”
of interest between users.
Several respondents suggested the formation of an
independent public body to monitor the situation.
Self-handling provision
Alongside contract length, this is one of the most
emotive subjects in the realm of ground handling.
The poll asked whether self-handlers should be
subject to a selection mechanism.
Member States in the main approved the concept,
with one even suggesting that the same criteria
used by independents should be adopted. Hungary,
Bulgaria, Spain and the UK suggested that transparency
was the most important part of the process.
Both airlines and airline associations opposed any
attempts to limit the level of self-handling. Where
circumstances were exceptional, though, discussion
between airport and airline was deemed desirable.
As for airports, the majority believed that the
fairest way to select self-handlers was through
the application of the same criteria used for
independent handler selection. Having said
that, many were of the opinion that the current
restriction on the number of self-handlers was not a
problem per se.
Predictably, both handler associations and
handling companies feel that selection criteria
should be firmly rooted in quality and training and
that selection processes applicable to independents
ought to mirror those of the self-handler.
In summary, airlines were set against any self-
handling restrictions but most other parties felt that
The 13th annual Ground Handling International Conference
In November 2011 the ground handling community will meet in Sitges,
Barcelona, from 28 November - 1 December at the Melia Sitges Hotel
Don’t miss this important event!
For more information please visit www.groundhandling.com or email jean@groundhandling.com
40 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
common rules and procedures should prevail in the
selection of handlers, of whatever sort.
Profitability and margins
Do airports make money?
One hopes so.
In the light of this, should the access fee to the
airport be defined more precisely, along with its
“reasonable profit margin”; and should there be an
independent body charged with monitoring airport
installations’ fees and charges?
Member States came down conclusively on the
need for transparent and defensible fees, with some
Members expressing concern over the putative cost
that might accrue were an
independent body appointed.
Airlines were of the belief
that precisely defined criteria
should be in place where
charges were concerned: ideally,
these would be transparent and
in line with the Airport Charges
Directive.
Perversely, airports believed
that no further definition
of charging mechanisms is
required, since what is in place
is adequate, with both national
and EU regulations covering
other contingencies.
Handlers were of the opinion
that all airport users ought to be charged the same
and some suggested the introduction of a charge
for centralised infrastructure usage. An independent
monitoring system was thought a good idea. Overall,
transparency was again the oft-quoted word.
Separation of accounts
Whilst the current Directive has wordage on this
subject, it has still been a topic for debate, with
claims of illegal accounting making the headlines
from time to time. This has been particularly so
where airports offer handling services.
Should, then, more clarity be given to this
matter? And how could this best be achieved?
“Satisfactory” was the comment from most
of the Member States, although a couple of
countries felt that more could be done to make
the whole procedure clearer. As for the airlines,
most believed that airports should be the
only operators requiring this clarity of process,
although one respondent added that it should
also apply to carriers which self-handled.
Not surprisingly, airports and airport
associations were satisfied with the status quo,
saying that it was down to Member States to
better enforce any rules on this topic or where
there were perceived shortcomings in the process.
According to handling companies, precise
rules on the separation of accounts are
desirable – and that auditors’ reports ought to
be published.
Handler selection procedures
At present, airports can provide handling
activites without having to pass through a tender
procedure. Should that be changed?
There were mixed views from the Member
States in this regard: some were against the
idea (arguing that airports are fixed entities and
cannot offer their services elsewhere) whilst
others believed that a more level playing field
might result from airports undergoing the same
tender process. Airline associations agreed with
the last point, again citing a more level playing
field. Airlines also took this stance whereas
airports expressed strong views about going
down this route, arguing their status was not akin
to that of the independent handler. And again,
predictably, handlers and handling companies
both felt that airport handling companies
ought to have to submit to the same tender
requirements as themselves.
Overall, it was believed by many that a more
competitive marketplace and a commonality
of standards was in the best interests of all
stakeholders.
A question of congestion
Currently, there is no framework in place that looks
at how the apron is managed in terms of space
allocation. Three options exist for airports with more
handling interest than physical space. These are
auctioning of premises; a “first come, first served”
procedure; and defining minimum criteria for new
entrants. What, then, should be the best way
forward in terms of space management?
Auctions were shouted down by a number
of Member States, since this would favour the
financially strongest. Of the airline associations,
one suggested the concept of GSE pooling as a
means of maximising existing space – and added
that the airport itself was responsible for the
creation of space, anyhow.
Airlines mentioned that space should be
allocated through consultation between the
principal stakeholders and that perhaps a limitation
on handler numbers might not be a bad idea.
Airports, quixotically, felt that the “first come,
first served” approach had much to commend
it; and others added that a permit scheme for
vehicles could help to cut down on redundant
or little-used equipment.
As for handling associations, the belief here
was that access ought to hinge directly on
airport capacity. Handlers proper were not
enthusiastic about the auctioning process but
rather felt that space allocation based on the
level of ground handling activity was the way
ahead. An interesting comment was received
from one independent, who suggested that a
central pool of GSE could be controlled by the
station and could be rented out to handlers.
In the final analysis, this was another emotive topic
which elicited a wide range of replies and comments.

Market regulation
Yet another testing topic: the Directive, as it stands,
encourages liberalisation through a 2m passenger/
50,000 tonnes of freight per annum statistic. That said,
Member States can limit suppliers and self-handlers
as they see fit. Today’s market thus sees a patchwork
of airports with disparate number of handlers at each.
Should greater harmony be introduced? And what
would be the gains or losses arising?
Again, this topic met with mixed views from
Member State replies, some believing that current
measures were adequate, others that more
market openings would be beneficial. Yet others
could not see any net gains from more handling
companies on a given ramp.
About half the airlines favoured increased
harmonisation within the marketplace but felt
that retaining the current minimum number
of handlers was an overall benefit. A number
of these also saw advantages in full market
liberalisation. Meanwhile, both airports and
airport associations argued against any more
harmonisation.
In marked contrast, handling companies
cited the benefits of increased harmonisation
within the handling sector and the desirability of
common standards throughout the EU.
Threshold levels
Where airports hover around Directive levels,
problems can ensue over handling company
numbers. Should there be a mechanism to
account for this? Or should additional thresholds
be introduced?
Ground handling liberalisation
Member States offered a spectrum of views
on this, since the topic detail varies from station
to station. A longer term airport activity view
was welcomed, though. Airlines felt that once a
threshold was reached, then a station ought to be
subject to the Directive; and airport associations,
as well as airports, also favoured the longer-term
traffic viewpoint.
Should self-handling be redefined?
“Yes,” said many of the Member States, mentioning
specifically a need where any sort of alliance was
involved. Airlines, almost to a man, agreed with
the need for redefinition and that this should
encompass codesharing, wet leases, dry leases
and alliance partners, too. Airports, however,
took a contrary view, believing that any extension
was unnecessary – although some felt that more
clarification would be useful. As for handlers, they
tended to agree with the airports, expressing
the fear that any such move would reduce the
contestable market and result in cascading sub-
contracting processes. In summary, the majority of
respondents were for better clarity when it came
to definitions.
Other issues
Finally, a spread of ancillary subjects and issues were
brought forward in the consultation. One of these
concerned regulation vis-à-vis liberalisation: would
Directive change increase the regulatory burden at
the expense of further market liberalisation?
Two respondents took the view that to assist
the introduction of market liberalisation, the EU or
Member States ought to introduce an independent
monitoring system to prevent any abuses. Another
point raised was that of the implementation of the
current Directive: this was not being embraced by
all around the EU, and was in consequence a great
source of frustration.
Certain changes to the existing Directive were
put forward. These included the non-classification
of offices as commercial premises; classification
of the fuel infrastructure under the aegis of
centralised infrastructure; the removal of ramp
handling for general aviation from the Directive;
a better drafting of the insurance requirements
on the part of ground handlers; and guidance for
the case where a handler exits an airport, leaving a
monopoly in his wake.
Aside from these points there was concern
over changes to self-handling in the light of
airline alliances, which could reduce the market
opportunities for the independent provider. It was
also suggested that companies offering handling
should not be associated with either airports or
airlines since a more focussed product offering
would ensue. Utopian, perhaps, but a laudable aim
notwithstanding. Finally, it was suggested that poor
ground handling provision would adversely affect
an airport’s reputation and consequently, it was
advisable to take measures to ensure minimum
standards for the end customer.
The Consultation, of course, is only just the start:
the long process of formulating and modifying will
now begin. Quite how much of the accrued wisdom
will be adopted and quite when it might be made
into a subsequent Directive remains to be seen.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 41

P R M , C AT E R I N G A N D C L E A N I N G N E W S
Canadian acquisition expands brand
Caterer gategroup and Cara
Operations have reached an
agreement for gategroup to acquire
Cara Airline Solutions, Canada’s
premier airline catering and logistics
provider. When completed, the
transaction will immediately establish
gategroup’s core brand Gate Gourmet
as a major player within the Canadian
airline services market, where it
currently does not have a presence.
Congo venture for French caterer
Servair has said that it is creating
two production units in the Congo.
To achieve this, it has established a
partnership with a local company,
Capital Sourcing & News Investments;
the two organisations will respectively
own 51% and 49% of the company
Servair Congo. With these new units,
Cara Airline Solutions, which
operates ten facilities at some
of Canada’s busiest and largest
airports, achieves annual revenues
of approximately CHF200m. “Adding
Cara Airline Solutions to our portfolio
fits well with our strategy to increase
shareholder value by taking advantage
of attractive acquisition opportunities
and growing with hub carriers in hub
markets,” explained gategroup’s Chief
Servair is further strengthening its
position as Africa’s leading caterer
in two of the Republic of Congo’s
key cities: Brazzaville, the political
and administrative capital served
by Maya Maya airport; and Pointe-
Noire, the economic capital served
by Agostinho-Neto International
gategroup | Servair | February 2011
Executive Officer, Guy Dubois. “This
transaction will complement our
market presence in North America,
where management expects annual
revenue will then approach CHF1bn. It
will also allow us to leverage our skills
and resources to achieve operational
synergies and enhanced market
access,” he added.
Cara Airline Solutions serves over 55
Canadian and international airline and
airport. Each possessing a production
capacity of 1,000 meal trays per day,
the two Servair Congo units are due
be operational by late May 2011 and
will employ approximately 120 people.
The Brazzaville unit will be supplying 19
airline companies and the Pointe Noire
unit 11 airline companies, including Air
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 43
rail customers. Cara Airline Solutions’
key customers include Air Canada, Air
Transat, Jazz, British Airways, Air France,
Air China, Jet Airways, China Airlines
and VIA Rail Canada, Canada’s national
passenger rail service.
The sale of Cara Airline Solutions
marks the final milestone in Cara’s
strategy to focus its operations on its
branded restaurant business. Further
details were not disclosed.
Burkina, Air France, Air Ivoire, Ethiopian
Airlines, Gabon Airlines, Lufthansa and
Royal Air Maroc.
Separately, Alitalia’s catering
activity, which until recently was fully
integrated, has been entrusted to
Servair Solution Italia. A seven year
contract has been signed.
Factory tour
A grounding
in power
Austria is home to a specialist GPU
manufacturer. The company’s MD, Jochen
Philipp, showed Alwyn Brice what goes on
behind the scenes.
inz isn’t perhaps Austria’s
L
biggest tourist draw. An
industrial town, it has a hard
time competing with the
likes of Vienna, which is
under two hours’ drive away.
Steel here is an important
source of income and
because of its availability,
engineering has become a
logical by-product. Which is
why, tucked away in a quiet
industrial zone, you’ll find Hitzinger, just one of
many medium-sized manufacturing companies
in this town.
A specialist in airport GPU supply, the
company has other interests, too, which include
diesel-driven UPS, hydro power applications
44 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
and alternators for use in railway engines. Its
portfolio includes frequency converters and
gensets and indeed, this latter was the raison
d’être behind the original company that
was formed back in 1945. Gensets, alongside
switchgear and alternators, were the products
marketed then and the railways were the
company’s principal beneficiary.
This family-owned business prospered in
the austerity of the post-war years and it was
only in 1979 that the founder handed over the
reins to his son, and later, to the son-in-law. A
management buy-out followed before the HTI
group acquired an 80% share in Hitzinger: the
remaining 20% was retained by the employees.
That’s how things have evolved and that
remains the situation today, a time when
Hitzinger has around 240 staff on the payroll.
Addressing aviation
Just three decades back, Hitzinger branched
out into the aviation sector. Having forged a
reputation in the electrical and mechanical
segments, it was approached to provide a GPU.
A small quantity was duly manufactured and this
initial foray was reinforced when KLM, unhappy
at the time with its then current provider, asked
Hitzinger to supply some GPUs for its own
use. That set the ball rolling and aviation sector
supply began to gather pace to the point that
today around a third of the company’s output is
airport-related.
However, according to Jochen Philipp, the last
24 months of recession haven’t exactly helped
the enterprise.
“We saw production fall by something like
30% in 2009,” he admits, “but saying that, we’ve
been able to offset that loss, because we picked
up business at four airports which required
frequency converters.” This has been a boon:
Leipzig, Vienna, Toulouse and Berlin have all been
involved in new airport or new terminal projects
for which electric converters have been an
important addition.
It’s an odd thing, but if you ask people in the
industry about the number of GPU providers,
the answer is likely to be in single digits. In fact,
there are many more manufacturers, perhaps
around 30, but of this total a lot are local,
parochial operations, the products of whom are
not found much outside their immediate vicinity.
There are, then, perhaps seven or so major
players who operate on the global stage and of
these, Hitzinger modestly positions itself within
the top three. Jochen uses the words “high
end” to describe his product: for that, read “not
cheap”; but then there is a very sound reasoning
behind the financial statement.
“Handlers and purchasers are looking more
now at the true cost of GSE,” he explains. “That’s
to say, not just what the chequebook price is,
but rather what the GSE will cost in the longer
term. In other words, total cost of ownership.
It’s my view that we have a GPU with the
lowest TCO in the business: it has a lower fuel
consumption than its rivals and it’s built to a
higher standard. Depending on usage, one of
our units could be good for 20 years whereas
our frequency converters could see a working
life of 25 years. That, I feel, is what sets our
range apart from the rest in the marketplace.”
It goes without saying that quality plays an
important part in all this: a GPU can be expected
to perform from anything between eight and
15 hours a day on the ramp, so it has to be
dependable in operation. Attention to detail is
also vital and indeed, the company won the Red
Dot Design Award in 2006 for its work on its
GPU range.
Hitzinger, like most GSE manufacturers, caters
to the civil as well as the military sector and this
latter segment takes around 10% of its output.
This is a relatively small fraction, perhaps, but as
Jochen explains, the figure isn’t static and can
increase or decrease in a given year.
Production proper falls between diesel-
driven and electric options. Electric sales are
steady, says Jochen, but often the limiting factor
is that of the airport infrastructure. In many
respects the electric approach is the neater
and, of course, the greener solution. Hitzinger’s
centralised system has much to commend it:
a fixed ground power room, with a frequency

Completed 150kVA in all its glory
converter, acts as the nerve centre and power
can be fed out to the gates accordingly.
Decentralised systems are also marketed and
here stationary converters, which are highly
compact units, can provide anything from 10kVA
to 315kVA. Needless to say, mobile versions are
also available to complete the range and units
can be positioned on airbridges, if required.
There is currently research underway on the
viability of a fuel cell application but this was still
at a very early stage at the time of writing.
All well and good – but other companies can
probably equal this sort of production statistic.
What, then, sets Hitzinger apart?
A question of quality
One of the key attributes, if not the most
critical, is that of product quality, a quality that
arises from the fact that Hitzinger manufactures
A lot of work precedes final location
the vast majority of its components in-house.
A walk around the factory endorses this fact.
Steel, predictably, is the least of the enterprise’s
worries and a comprehensively-equipped
toolshop allows for the manufacture of the
myriad components that go into the build
process. On the day I visited I was treated to
the sight of huge presses cutting sheet metal
as well as many other machines utilised in
the fabrication of extremely high tolerance
components. All scrap is recycled here, with
nothing wasted. Although items like tyres,
axles and engines are bought in, as indeed are
the fibreglass wings that enshroud the GPU,
the rest is virtually all manufactured within the
factory. Engine choice is predominantly Deutz
when it comes to options, with the occasional
Cummins featuring in the assembly line. But such
components aside, all the switchgear, electronic
Factory tour
The finished product: Hitzinger prides itself on detail
controls and the alternators themselves are
assembled at Hitzinger. In fact, since the
operation has been growing, it has had to
relocate to the other side of the street, where a
new premises has become available that boasts
around 20,000 square metres of space.
There is, not unnaturally, a degree of sub-
contracting within this operation and Jochen
reports that there are few hiccoughs in this
respect, with parts coming through the door on
a JIT basis.
The factory is slightly spread out in terms of
its footprint but it doesn’t take long to walk
around. The GPU is built on a simple assembly
line, typically by just two staff, namely a
mechanic and an electrician: around 24 hours
are required to assemble such a unit. Behind the
scenes, as it were, you’ll see the tortuous process
that is the fabrication of the alternator: steel
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 45
Factory tour
Incredibly, the only way to tame the spaghetti is by hand
rings, copper piping, unruly bundles of wiring
and assorted other parts are all coaxed by hand
into something tidier and more purposeful
before the whole is treated to a coating of high
temperature varnish that seals and protects the
unit. Alternators here come in all shapes and
sizes, with the biggest destined for ships or large
factory installations.
After-sales is another part of the whole
picture and in this respect Hitzinger relies
on a round-the-clock, back-up operation.
Commonality of parts helps keep inventory
levels down and it prides itself on being able to
supply parts for older equipment, too. Agents
also keep stocks to ensure a fluid operation.
After all, when you’ve had the responsibility
of looking after the requirements of the A380,
there’s no margin for error.
Design elements
Viewing a finished unit, one appreciates more
fully the thought that has gone into its design
Dipping process essential to protect the finished unit
46 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
and it’s thus perhaps not surprising that the
company picked up that award mentioned
earlier. The control panel is simple and has a
minimum of buttons so that operators can
quickly familiarise themselves with the unit’s
workings. There’s diagnostic software, too. The
rotating diode assembly is easily detached (if
required) by the subtraction of just four bolts.
Sensors are fitted under the hooks that accept
the cable plugs: if these latter are not hung up
after use, the sensors come into play to alert
the operator. In this way there is no chance of
the GPU being towed away with the cable still
attached to the aircraft. The marriage of steel
and fibreglass has been carefully arranged, too:
the top shell, for example, does not fall flush
to the steel chassis but rather lies inset. Thus
any low level impact will be borne by the steel
rather than the more yielding resin. The sides of
the unit, which comprise bins for the cabling, are
fitted with steel rolls which aid the drawing out
of the cables proper. It’s this kind of attention to
A lot of thought goes into the design elements
Much of Hitzinger’s labour recruited locally
detail that singles out the Austrian product from
that of its competitors.
Hitzinger isn’t just a fabricator of GSE, though,
for it is also an employer that has something of
a social conscience. It has invested in the skills
of the future: to do this, each year it takes on
a number of apprentices, which can total up
to ten or so. Thus, in some respects, Hitzinger’s
future is assured and it’s not by chance that
staff tend to stay at this company. There’s also
a pool of skilled labour locally, which can be of
use. Jochen himself started off here as a service
engineer before moving on to the sales division:
currently he’s residing in Singapore, where he is
busy marketing Hitzinger’s products in the Far
East.
Which brings us neatly to the subject of
markets. Europe accounts for around 30% of
Hitzinger’s sales with the Middle East and the Far
East contributing the rest. Northern Europe is
its biggest market, which comes as no surprise.
Jochen’s company set out its stall a decade
back in Asia and is now actively reinforcing the
brand name there. With three main offices (in
Singapore, Germany and the UK), its presence
could well be termed strategic. The US is not of
interest at present, though.
Intriguingly, in the pipeline, Jochen confirms
that there are some interesting developments,
which will be revealed later on this year.
Those attending the InterAirport in Munich
might want to make a note.
The assembly line: military and civil sectors are addressed

AMSS loaders in action, making light work of filling a Boeing 747-200. Their overall size can be appreciated in this image
No holds
barred
They’re traditionally diesel-powered,
they’re noisy and they’re heavy. But is that
perception of the hi-lift beginning to change?
ast year, if nothing else, saw
L
something of a reappraisal
of the hi-lift loader. Not one
but several companies began
to actively highlight and
promote the work that they
had been undertaking in the
loader sector; in particular, in
making it a more user- and
environmentally-friendly item
of GSE.
Thus the likes of TLD
and JBT AeroTech have brought to market
electric hi-lift loaders, aimed squarely at
those operations keen to reduce their carbon
footprint. Meanwhile, German manufacturer
Trepel has made the news with its prototypical
electric loader which has been fitted not only
with a new, easily-removed battery arrangement
but which has also been running on lithium ion;
and there has been Airmarrel, a company that
has taken centre stage with its still highly novel,
hydrogen-powered loader, which has been
extensively trialled in Spain. With such a wealth
of engineering talent available to this sector,
surely the past 12 months have been busy?
Tough trading conditions
In the UK, AMSS’s Andy Cookson says that the
manufacturer’s most popular GSE in terms of
sales receipts for 2010 were the company’s high
lifts: both the Atlas and the 319 Olympic loaders
performed strongly throughout the year and,
most importantly, they have gained AMSS new
customers in the Middle Eastern region.
“Notwithstanding the difficult trading
conditions of 2010, AMSS continued to invest
in its product range, in particular the Atlas
MK5, which has benefited from load platform
improvements,” Andy notes. “We’ve also
introduced a modified cab design and improved
the drive characteristics for Middle Eastern
climates. The TSU range has a new lift basket
configuration, with significant corrosion resistant
features, as well as improved tank durability and
better vacuum systems.”
AMSS, he declares, is quite ready to provide
alternative power, namely electric, for its range
of beltloaders and passenger steps. “Ahead of
customer interest we are working on a hybrid
model for our smaller cargo loader in readiness
for future demands.
“We see the GSE market in 2011 as being much
the same as it was in 2010, with the challenging
trading conditions remaining throughout the
year. However, business is definitely there to be
won.
“As stated earlier, for AMSS 2010 has
been a year of significant investment by the
shareholder, particularly in the area of research
and development, to enable an enhanced
product offering in readiness for future
opportunities in the marketplace.”
Meanwhile, at France-based Sovam, Julien
Hautbois relates that the latest news concerning
his range of GSE concerns that of modifications
to his 7 tonne loaders’ access ladders. These
enhancements have been carried out on the
PEB7M and LM models and there have been
other changes, like the adoption of LED lights
Hi lifts & loaders
on the vehicles to make them more visible on
the ramp in bad weather. The company also
manufactures a 14 tonne loader.
Developments in solar power-assisted GSE
have been confined to some of its passenger
steps although it is interesting to note such
developments, nonetheless. Electric power
has been adopted by a specialist item of GSE
in its range, though: the EASYMOV’X battery-
powered platform. This compact, highly-
manoeuvrable lifting bed has been designed for
all indoor work, including aircraft maintenance.
Its ATEX version is aimed at operations in a
certified 1-IIA-T4 area. With four roller type
wheels controlled by PLC, positioning of the
EASYMOV’X is simple in the extreme. It is also
fitted with a remote control box, anti-skid floor
and a retractable scissor guard rail system for a
totally safe operation.
Late in 2010 Sovam was acquired by Mecanelle.
A useful doubling of the enterprise’s capital has
ensued, so that the company can now further
expand its activities as 2011 unfolds.
Another French manufacturer, that of
Airmarrel, has made something of a name for
itself with the above-mentioned hydrogen
loader. With no likelihood of polluting or leaving
emissions on the ramp, and virtually silent in
operation, here is an example of engineering
ingenuity that, whilst some maintain is ahead of
its time, nonetheless makes a great deal of sense
at the present.
The LAM 3500 Green ticks the myriad
boxes so beloved of the environmentalist and
as an autonomous vehicle, its place on the
ramp should be assured. A hydrogen fuel cell
provides the impetus and this is linked to the
nickel cadmium battery. This coupling enables
the fuel cell (which is effectively a small bottle
of hydrogen that works in conjunction with
oxygen) to provide electrical energy when the
unit is at rest and has the effect of automatically
recharging the battery in just six hours. Capable
of delivering 220V and 2200W of power,
Airmarrel reckons that this novel loader (which
is just one of a range of loaders that span lift
requirements from 3.5 tons to 32 tons) is both
safe and highly efficient – and should provide
the buyer with a payback period of around just
three years.
Nearly 18 months ago, TLD took up the
challenge of a battery-powered loader based on
input from several key customers.
A specification was developed that would
change the market expectation of autonomy
and battery life for battery-powered loaders.
The main goals were to operate with the
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 47
Hi lifts & loaders
Electric future on the cards for TLD
speed and power of a diesel loader for a full
day of heavy operation, up to and beyond the
handling of 250 containers, before having the
need to re-charge.
The TLD TXL-838-reGen, a 7 ton battery-
powered loader, was the net result and TLD’s
Jacques Roux declares that it is living up to
expectations. Meeting (and even exceeding) its
initial lofty goals has ensured that the TXL-838-
reGen has the highest battery autonomy of any
DC-powered loader on the market today.
During development, TLD studied how to re-use
the energy that was available in the lowering of the
loader’s elevator, rather than discarding it. These
studies resulted in a system design that reclaims
energy (regeneration) and uses it to supplement
the battery during its next lift, in a way that
avoids the wasteful and harmful spike of current
normally encountered. The key innovation is the
method, patented by TLD, of managing the energy
flows through the use of Supercapacitors. These
Supercapacitors are able to absorb and return
energy to the system at a very fast rate compared
to other energy storage devices and therefore
ideally lend themselves to the cargo loader
application.
The result has been a loader that can run two or
three times as long between charges as any other
loader in the marketplace and which possesses
similar advantages in terms of extended battery life.
The German market
Oliver Kesy at Mulag admits that loaders are
only a small proportion of his company’s output
but nonetheless was able to respond for the
purposes of this feature. He relates that some
loading transporters of the Pulsar 14 LT type
found buyers within Europe in 2010. In fact, his
product range was extended recently, with the
German builder Mulag reports steady business and ongoing work in alternative power
48 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
new development of the Pulsar 14 LT, which is
effectively a loading transporter with some special
features. Designed with a liftable platform, the
Pulsar 14 LT can be used both as a container pallet
transporter and a high loader for the loading and
unloading of both trucks and aircraft. Easy and
fast operation is possible with the hydrostatic
drive, which operates through two hub motors
on the rear axle; further, the unit is equipped with
dual circuit power brakes with a vacuum booster.
“Alternative drive technologies, like gas driven
engines with CNG or LPG, hybrid drives and
fuel cell concepts, are important parts of our
technological development and activities for a
greener environment. Normally, because of the
lack of infrastructure in terms of gas fuel stations,
recharging outlets and so on, as well as cost
considerations, the customer still tends to buy the
classic diesel drive technology.”
As for 2011, Oliver feels that there may well be
a gradual return to a more normal situation within
the marketplace, although he’s wary of expecting
too much too soon.
At Istanbul-based Timsan, the most popular
GSE were catering trucks (specifically the CT5800)
and the SBC7500 model belt conveyors. This
latter, which is a self-propelled unit, benefited
from a redesigned operator’s cab in 2010. Of
interest is the fact that the company has been
looking at the options available in terms of
alternative power and has been modifying its
passenger stairs and belt conveyors to run on
electric power; in the longer term, the Turkish
enterprise is aiming at extending this technology
to embrace ambulifts, catering trucks and water
and lavatory units. Despite the global gloom,
Timsan’s spokesperson admitted that 2010 had
been a successesful year for the manufacturer and
it was hoped that 2011 would also follow the same
pattern, as the world economy picks up.
For Trepel, the two most popular loaders in
2010 were its CHAMP 70 and CHAMP 140, but the
company’s CHAMP 350, which is Trepel’s highest
capacity loader, also found buyers.
“It is difficult to say where our main sales were
in 2010,” admits Carsten Schimkat, “but sales in
Europe were good; furthermore, Australia and
India bought a lot of Trepel equipment in 2010.
We have been promoting alternative power only
in our 7 ton loaders and in our electric cargo tugs.
Nevertheless, we are considering enlarging our
range of electrified equipment in the future.
“It seems that cargo traffic as well as passenger
traffic is growing again. Therefore, we at Trepel are
very optimistic in terms of sales of loaders as well
as aircraft tractors for 2011.”
US activity
Across the Atlantic, JBT AeroTech’s loader sales
were greatly improved when compared to
2009: this was put down to the airline industry
beginning its economic recovery. According to
Mike Melander, JBT AeroTech’s Loader Engineering
Manager, one outstanding feature was the
high ratio of heavy main deck loaders sold in
comparison to lower lobe loaders. “This we
attributed to the double digit air cargo recovery
and the introduction of two new models, namely
the Commander 40i and Commander 60i,” he
explains.
“In response to our customer’s requests, JBT
AeroTech introduced the Commander 40i and
Commander 60i, with maximum lift capacities
of 20,000 kilogrammes and 30,000 kilogrammes
respectively, as replacements for the venerable
MDL-40 and MDL-60 that have provided safe
and dependable service for over 30 years. The
Commander 40i and Commander 60i offer the
same dependability plus the efficient features
found in the Commander loader family, such as the
Heliroll convey system, swing-out power module,
solid tyres and a PLC electrical system with an
onboard diagnostics facility. A new feature on
the Commander 40i and Commander 60i is the
patent pending LIFT smart closed loop automatic
lifting system, which ensures smooth uplifts with
improved stability for heavy or off-centre loads;
and a fragile lift mode that is designed to handle
sensitive loads such as livestock and electronic
components. In addition, the Commander 60i’s rear
platform is 1.5 metres longer than that of the
MDL-60, enabling it to accommodate three,
98 x 125 inch containers, providing more efficient
loading operations.”
As far as alternative power is concerned,
Mike Melander adds that the 7 ton Commander
15i electric continues to prove itself as a very
efficient cargo loader with ample power to drive
long distances and operate on several flights
between recharges. Loader operators have been
very complimentary about the quietness and
smokeless operation and have benefited from
the same power and performance as their diesel
Commanders.
“There has been considerable interest in the
Commander 15i electric in Europe, where we
recently sold units to customers in Austria, France
and Sweden. In addition, at the International
Airport Equipment Expo in Las Vegas last October,
several customers discussed converting their
existing diesel Commanders to electric power
in order to comply with emission standards in
California and other US locations with green GSE
initiatives.”
Looking ahead to 2011, JBT AeroTech expects
the airline industry to continue its recovery, with
the prospect of improved loader sales as airlines
maintain profitability and increase capacity with new
aircraft deliveries. “However,” cautions Mike, “this
could also create a downside if passenger and air
cargo demand do not keep pace with the capacity
increases. We also expect to see more customers
opting for electric loaders as the ultimate solution
for meeting emission compliance standards as well
as reducing their operating costs.”

Waste disposal
In the trade they’re known as honey carts or honey wagons. Euphemisms aside,
what’s the market been like in recent times for this specialist segment?
oilet and water carts are, I
guess, the unsung heroes
T of the GSE world. From the
smallest executive jet to the
biggest Airbus or Boeing, all
have a requirement that will
see a waste tank emptied
at some point. Those waste
tanks vary enormously in size,
of course: and so the vehicles
required to service them
come in different capacities.
Whilst the design of this kind of GSE may
not exactly be rocket science, nonetheless you
can’t simply just go out and build a cart on a
whim. For a start, because of the necessary
hygiene requirements, both lavatory and water
tanks rely on stainless steel fabrication. This is
especially so in the case of lavatory trucks into
which products like Racasan may be added: this
is a highly corrosive cleanser, and so the builder
generally has little other option. Ideally, tanks
need to be manufactured with as few welds and
seams as possible: consequently, large sections
of metal are preferred to smaller when it
comes to the building process. Galvanised steel
construction is, in theory, viable but the reality
is that because tanks made in this way require
heating, large baths would be required – and the
heating invariably affects the finish of the steel
in question, which can result in distortion or an
uneven finish - or perhaps both.
Design of lavatory and water trucks is heavily
influenced by the aircraft itself. In very general
terms, these units are built with a low profile
because they need to be driven under a fuselage
without any danger of coming into contact with
the aircraft’s skin. A shallow build, then, becomes
the order of the day.
When it comes to discharging the waste
from the aircraft there are two methods
available: gravity or vacuum assisted. As might be
expected, there are advocates of both systems.
It’s fair to say that if vacuum-assisted, then the
discharge process can be achieved more quickly.
A vacuum-assisted operation will require the
addition of a ball valve in the pipe work: and
power for the vacuum is also necessary, of
course.
Where cold climates are the target market
then some thought has to be given to the overall
design. Clearly, when sub-zero temperatures
are encountered, then special preparations are
required. This might take the form of a second
skin or jacket around the tank which can be
insulated: there’s no hard and fast gap between
Airside GSE’s application based on many innovative
details, honed over the years
Lavatory and water trucks
the skins and 50 millimetres has been proven to
work well. Warm air is circulated via a diesel-
powered air heater so the whole design is akin
to a wet suit in some respects. It’s important,
too, to protect any pipework in extremes of
temperature.
Whilst a lavatory truck is typically fitted with
a movable platform to assist the operator, there
is less requirement for this in the water truck. In
fact, although manufacturers frequently offer
both of these vehicles if they decide to address
the sector’s requirements, the two disciplines
are actually different. A similarity is that of the
base material – stainless steel – and again, the
smaller the number of parts required in the
tank assembly, the better the end result will be.
Hygiene is a top priority again in respect of both
water carts and trucks.
The suppliers
UK manufacturer Airside GSE has many years’
experience in the construction of both of
these types of GSE and has sold units all over
the world. The enterprise’s Mike Cardy points
to many refinements that have become the
company’s trademark over time: he likes to
construct the tanks from three sections of steel,
for example, and he has added the concept
of a “floating” tank: by this, he means that the
tank is insulated from the rest of the chassis
through flexible mounts. This has the effect
of obviating the chances of stress entering the
feet of the tank and thereby causing problems
at a later date. Airside can supply tanks for the
biggest aircraft currently flying: top of the range
is a 4,500 litre capacity model which actually
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 49
Lavatory and water trucks
AMSS: fresh markets beckon
divides up into a 3,000 litre compartment for
waste with the remaining capacity given over
to flush. Towable carts, diesel-powered carts
and electric carts all feature in the company’s
portfolio and to make sure that the lavatory
trucks comply with all the requisite regulations,
they are built to a maximum height of 1.64
metres. As would be expected, Airside is able to
custom-build where requirements are specific.
Also in the UK is AMSS: the company’s Andy
Cookson declares that he has had significant
success with the company’s new model toilet
service Unit, with which he has been opening up
fresh markets in Eastern Europe and the Middle
East over the course of the last 12 months.
Across the Irish Sea, Mallaghan manufactures
a variety of lavatory and water trucks, typically
spanning a range that includes 1,000, 3,000
and 4,500 litre units. Mallaghan first started
manufacturing both toilet and water trucks ten
years ago and now has units in operation in many
countries and regions, including Ireland, the UK,
Europe, the Middle East and the Far East.
As mentioned, there are three different
capacities available, starting with the 1,000 litre
unit for the low cost carrier user to the 3,000
litre and 4,500 litre versions that are used by
companies in many airports such as Dublin,
Heathrow and Dusseldorf. Currently, all of
the toilet and water trucks manufactured by
Mallaghan are mounted on a commercial truck
chassis, such as Iveco or Mercedes. Mallaghan
is, in fact, happy to build for any truck chassis
and can easily adapt its mounting frames to
suit the chassis. Its customers choose their
own preferred chassis, which always varies from
airport to airport, since choice is influenced by
many factors such as local back-up support for
the chassis.
The Irish company manufactures all tanks
and components from stainless steel and on
Vestergaard, the de-icing specialist, is no stranger to this sector
50 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
Mallaghan able to offer a wide range of capacities
the toilet trucks, a vacuum is fitted as standard.
The rear tail-lift, which has a working height
of 5 metres, is an option that is chosen by
most customers. Another option is the full
winterisation kit and this is a package that has
been developed: it can be added to the truck
so that it is able to operate in temperatures of
-25ºC. Mallaghan’s customers report that both
toilet and water trucks are very reliable and are
well designed for routine maintenance.
Danish manufacturer Vestergaard may be
better known for its de-icing equipment but it
also fields a range of toilet and water trucks for
the handling sector.
“Our small-to-medium sized SVTS/ SWS
and MVTS/ MWS unit have sold well in various
parts of Europe, including Denmark, Norway
and Poland,” relates Jan Pojezny on behalf of
the company. “But the preferred Vestergaard
lavatory /water trucks continue to be the VTS/
WS series, which typically come with a 3,000 litre
tank capacity.
“Over the past few years, we have had a very
consistent customer base in the CIS countries;
they require the robust Vestergaard design,
which is ideal for operation in extremely cold
climates and for driving on surfaces which are
not always apron-smooth. The most significant
order for us in 2010 was without doubt that of
American Airlines, which required 49 VTS units
for various AA stations. In terms of number of
units sold, it is the largest single order ever in
Vestergaard’s 48-year history.”
Vestergaard’s range of lavatory and water
service trucks is being continuously enhanced
and it recently expanded the tank capacity range.
The basic WS/ VTS model is thus now also
available in versions with 5,000 litre tanks, which
is particularly useful at larger airport operations.
This sort of unit (in fact, four in all) have been
delivered to BA’s key Heathrow operation and
Sovam can supply from 600 litres up
another example will soon follow, for operation
in Abu Dhabi.
Customisation is a fundamental principle
in Vestergaard’s trucks, and this can include
anything from the chassis to the power source
when it comes to the customer’s choice. This is
exactly what Air France opted for, when ordering
a fleet of electric-powered WS and VTS trucks
for various stations in France.
“Thinking environmentally-friendly is inherent
in our design process,” continues Jan. “This
means a minimum energy requirement in all
power systems, as well as for other aspects in
lavatory truck operations. Take for example, our
steam generator solution for removing blue ice
off aircraft lavatory hatches. On a Vestergaard,
it’s possible to use tap water, whereas some
competing units require higher priced (and more
energy-intensive) distilled water.”
Finally, Jan believes that the New Year holds a
lot of promise.
“Vestergaard saw a very strong upswing in
market interest for GSE, in particular during the
second half of 2010. In addition to the usual
urgent, seasonally motivated orders, in particular
for our de-icers, we have received a significant
number of orders for delivery in 2011 - and even
beyond. This includes frame agreements with
several customers, as well as the VTS order from
American Airlines.”
In France, Sovam fields a range of toilet and
water trucks, totalling some eight units in all. The
smallest towable device has a 600 litre capacity
whilst at the other end of the scale is the EP91
water truck, which is fitted with a 4,000 litre
tank. Of interest to those keen on a cleaner
ramp, Sovam introduced in 2010 two electric-
powered water and lavatory trucks. The VT806
toilet truck has a 600 litre capacity of which 400
litres can be employed for waste with the rest
turned over to rinsing water; whilst the EP806
water cart can carry up to 600 litres of drinking
water.
The requisite energy is supplied by a 12 volt
battery which sets in motion an electric pump
for filling the tanks (with drinking water or
rinsing water); whilst the draining process for the
VT806 is achieved through the simple expedient
of gravity. The pump can also be pressed into
service for a mixing procedure (such as anti-
freeze injection) and, moreover, there exists
the possibility of re-heating and mixing via a
secondary pump. Such an arrangement allows
for recharging the battery through an integral
charger mounted on the trailer.
Although Sovam doesn’t actually manufacture
a chassis that runs on electric power, it has
worked on solar-powered GSE (such as
passenger steps) and, encouraged by this
research, it has been looking closely at the

development of a zero-emissions solution for
the water and lavatory truck segment.
A US perspective
Stinar’s comprehensive range of lavatory carts
currently numbers five and it can offer three
types of water cart. Typically the lavatory carts’
pumping systems can be operated by hand,
electric motor or combustion engine. On-road
versions are available and other features, such as a
winterisation kit, can be supplied.
Another US manufacturer that supplies this
type of equipment is Charlatte, although it is
equally able to supply potable water GSE. Aimed
at the regional jet market, the units’ 100 and 200
gallon capacities reflect this. A 400 gallon unit,
based on the DC3 chassis, is due for unveiling later
this year. Interestingly, for Delta in JFK, one of its
toilet trucks was specially modified with a man
lift to allow access to the sill height of a B757. All
its sales have been electric-powered, serving to
underline the company’s green credentials.
Aero Specialties’ Derek Rose says that the
company’s most popular models in 2010 were the
LC60-RJ1 lavatory carts, along with the WC80-RJ1
and WC 100E water carts.
“Growth of these products has been mainly
driven by the expansion of regional and narrow
body aircraft fleets among the airlines, especially
in Europe. As the commercial air carriers continue
to buy and fly more fuel-efficient regional aircraft,
we are also seeing them operate more efficient
and durable towable units, such as our RJ Series
Cart, rather than operating larger lavatory and
water trucks. Additionally, towable cart systems
allow for less expensive overall start-up and
equipment costs, since operators can use baggage
tugs that are already in their fleet to move the
units, rather than purchasing a dedicated and
expensive lavatory or water service vehicle.
“This being said, we have also seen interest in
and purchases of our Lavatory and Water Inserts,
which give our customers the ability to mount
a lavatory or water service unit on to an existing
fleet vehicle, such as a truck or small tug. These
inserts also allow for a useful surplus of trucks and
fleet vehicles at a later date, since the customer is
not required to purchase a lavatory truck, merely a
standard truck. This would subsequently be easier
to dispose of.”
Derek reports that little has been altered
or modified insofar as the technology here is
concerned.
“We are offering more of our range of units
as Inserts to meet fleet demands. However, our
designs have proven to be very popular, easy to
use and reliable. Thus, at this point, there’s no
sense in changing a good thing. However, through
the vast number of customers we have operating
in extreme cold environments, we did add an
option to our lavatory and water carts: this was an
extreme winterisation kit, allowing operators and
carts to be out on the ramp for extended periods.
Basically we’re protecting the units from freezing
in virtually any humanly survivable cold weather.
“We have always been a green company and
have offered our lavatory and water units in an
electric-powered configuration, amongst others.
Lavatory and water trucks
These have always been more popular sellers than
our fuel-driven units. Additionally, we are selling
a large number of our newest product, the diesel
hybrid JetGo 28.5v DC ground power unit. This is
a combination diesel and electric power in a GPU
that is highly efficient and easy to use.”
Derek further believes that 2011 will potentially
be his best year ever for OEM goods. “Currently,
our oxygen and nitrogen systems and lavatory/
water cart sales into 2011 have been much better
than expected. The industry is certainly rebounding
and aircraft sales, charter and service may prove to
have a good year as well. As you know, GSE is the
backbone of the industry and the basis necessary
to get aircraft airborne: so the more aircraft out
there, the better for our industry.”
Lavatory and potable water service vehicles
manufactured by ACCESSAIR are now available
with an automated control system that allows
the operator to simply select the aircraft type
to be serviced, thereafter allowing the unit to
service the aircraft automatically, with minimal
interaction from the operator. Based on preset
quantities, this ensures that each aircraft is
serviced properly and precisely and allows the
operator to concentrate on monitoring his
surroundings and equipment.
Moving this to the next level, the system is
also available with a data logger: all processes are
recorded and may be retrieved via Wi-Fi, a USB
storage device or similar. This will allow a Station
Manager, or other person, to view the exact RF
signal (such as rinse and charge quantities) of the
serviced aircraft for accurate record keeping.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 51
Ramp Safety Briefing

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

At Ground Handling International we with your help. Your stories and observations Details can be sent to the editor (alwyn@
have always been keen to keep up safety from the ramp are vital to these pages: so groundhandling.com) and, as always, strict
standards but we can only make progress please keep writing in. anonymity will be observed.

BRISBANE AIRPORT PICKS UP SAFETY ACCOLADE

It’s always good to start off a new
year with some cheering news,
so I’m delighted to report that
Brisbane Airport’s Operations
Centre Team has received the
Australasian Aviation Ground
Safety Council’s Ground Safety
award for 2010.
Chris Barber (Vice Chairman)
and Kevin Taylor (Chairman) visited
the team and the award was
presented to Peter Dunlop (Airside
Operations Manager), with a dozen
of the team in attendance.
This award was in recognition of
the holistic approach that the team Kevin Taylor presenting the 2010 AAGSC award to Peter Dunlop, BAC Airside Operations Manager
has taken to reduce the threat of
FOD damage, whilst at the same uncommon to have about 40 discovered by a staggering 99%. safety. The purpose of their Award
time looking at ways to reduce people coming to the meetings. The Airside Operations Centre is to recognise the individual
the risks of runway incursion and An example of one of the Team have also made amendments or team within an aviation
wildlife management. initiatives that was introduced was to the Airside Drivers’ Handbook organisation in the Australasian
Peter was quick to acknowledge that of limiting runway crossings to to reflect the above restrictions, region and the employing
that the award was not only tugs and aircraft under tow. It was and included that all vehicles with company who has made a
recognition for all the hard work of reported that during routine runway a tray that have the potential to significant contribution to aviation
his Operations Team but also for inspections, Airside Operations carry a load must have a cargo net ground safety within his or her
the efforts put in by the whole of Officers were discovering torches, or tonneau cover; and when the organisation or to the industry as
the Brisbane Airport community. screwdrivers, spanners, headsets tray is employed, all loads must be a whole.
Peter was happy to report that and the like. By eliminating other covered. The AAGSC would like to
over recent years the attendances vehicles crossing, the Airside The AAGSC’s focus is to increase congratulate Peter and his team
at the ramp safety meetings have Operations Centre Team has the awareness and promotion in their efforts to improve ground
steadily grown so that it is not reduced the amount of FOD of excellence in aviation ground safety at Brisbane airport.

UNEXPECTED AIRBRIDGE FATALITY IN INDIA

Next in the queue, arguably one
of the most bizarre accidents
in aviation history. Here, a
carrier’s employee sadly died
at an Indian airport after her
right hand became entrapped
in an airbridge as it was being
retracted.
According to the press release,
the woman immediately
collapsed through shock and was
rushed to the airport’s medical
centre. Doctors unfortunately
failed in their attempts to revive
her. The airport police have since
recorded a case of death due to
negligence, based on a complaint
by the airport manager.
It appears that the accident
occurred when the guest
services officer of the airline
and another were returning to
the main building of the airport
after ensuring that all passengers
on the flight had boarded the
aircraft. The airport authorities
have subsequently ordered an
enquiry.
We can’t really comment
further on this tragedy, apart
from extend our condolences to
the woman’s family.

AIRPORT CREW MEMBER KILLED UNDER UTILITY CAR WHEELS

There is, sadly, further bad news
to impart: a report recently came
to our attention in which an
airline staff member died under
the wheels of a ground power
supply vehicle that was being
driven by a ground handler at an
airport in the Far East.
According to witnesses, a
Japan-bound aircraft parked at the
airport’s Terminal 2 was designated
as requiring aircraft ground power
services. A ground handler was
accordingly tasked with supplying
the aircraft with power and took out
an aerial power supply car, which he
put into reverse without seeing the
airline ground crew member behind
him. The car hit the crew member
and rolled over him, killing him
instantly.
Once again, it’s all down to
awareness on the ramp: and most
readers who have driven GSE will
know that reversing procedures
are highly dangerous at any time of
the day and require a lot of extra
vigilance.

That’s all for this issue. As mentioned above, please get in touch if you have something that ought to be shared with the industry.
Safety, after all, is a daily business.

52 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL


R A M P E Q U I P M E N T
Have wings, will fly
It’s not often we can report on a
scoop but we start the New Year
with just such an example. Brand
new from Airside GSE is the Pegasus,
which MD Mike Cardy believes to be
a long-awaited answer for those who
need to regularly load and offload
horses (and indeed other, similar
Julius Nyerere receives an upgrade
Logan Teleflex has been selected to
supply its advanced baggage handling
system technology, knowledge and
skills to Dar es Salaam’s Julius Nyerere
International airport.
SITA, a specialist in air transport
communications and IT solutions, has
brought in Logan Teleflex to provide a
Departures BHS system as a key part of
its build, operate and transfer contract
with the Tanzania Airports Authority.
Grenzebach fields an ABLE solution
Grenzebach Automation, a noted
supplier of automation solutions for
airport baggage handling, is providing
innovative, yet reliable and efficient
equipment to close the remaining
automation gap between the luggage
conveyor and the apron.
The Grenzebach, robot-based
Airside GSE | Grenzebach Automation | February 2011
N E W S
animals).
As can be seen from the appended
image, this is an elevating solution
that can easily be towed into position
for operation. Solidly constructed,
the floor of the GSE is covered with
non-slip material, thereby ensuring
that quadrupeds can be safely
The project covers the entire baggage
handling solution, including X-ray
equipment and check-in counters.
Logan Teleflex will supply and install
16 check-in counters and one out-
of-gauge check-in, a single 100% hold
baggage screening line, a horizontal
make-up carousel and security doors
for this important upgrade project.
The screening line includes
innovative Rapiscan MVXR and 628XR
Automated Baggage Loading
Equipment (dubbed ABLE) is a fully
automated system for loading bags
and suitcases into ramp carts or ULDs.
It has proved highly successful during
extensive field trials at a major European
airport. Among other benefits, this
system is said to triple throughput per
moved along its length. Its operating
range is impressive: the Pegasus
will effectively load animals on to
X-ray machines with four workstations,
giving Level 2 and Level 3 security
screening. The latter X-ray machine will
be used for manual screening of OOG
bags.
The check-in counters and departure
gate counters, immigration booths
and various extra fixtures will come
from Gate Technology through Logan
Teleflex. Baggage transportation, roller
and conveyor systems and weigh scales
operator, drastically increase space
efficiency and comply with workplace
health and safety regulations.
The ABLE solution consists of several
modules. First, the baggage is analysed
and parameters such as weight,
geometry and type of bag are assessed.
Optionally, baggage identification via
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 53
small aircraft (such as the HS146) but
equally, is able to load all the way up
to a B757.
The initial units were made ready
just before the end of December
2010 and the very first example
was subsequently despatched to
Farnborough airport. Cost-effective
and simple to operate, this new GSE
is expected to find favour at airports
that habitually handle large numbers
of horses in any given year.
will be supplied by Logan Teleflex.
The system will be equipped with a
programmable logic controller that will
manage the conveyor using a special
procedure called window reservation.
This sections the conveyor into
individual zones or windows, one for
each bag. By this method, passenger
waiting times will be reduced and the
flow of bags through the system will be
speeded up.
barcode or RIFD can be made. The
current height profile inside the loading
units is also measured. A load manager
utilises this data to automatically
calculate the optimal load position
within the ULD. This automated loading
system can be configured to suit any
specific situation.
 R A M P E Q U I P M E N T
Manufacturer on a roll with new idea
Roller bed specialist Joloda
Hydraroll has just announced a
new pneumatic roller track system
for the airfreight industry. Dubbed
Trailerloda, the new low profile,
stand-alone system can be quickly
and easily installed into a standard
trailer, whether new or already
in service. Importantly, it offers
airfreight operators added options
to buy, hire, contract or operate
standard box trailers, curtainsiders
or reefers as an alternative to long
lead time, high cost, bespoke units.
Alternatively, it can help operators
respond to seasonal peaks or
unforseen demand. It is particularly
popular with the refrigerated
vehicle sector since as the floor sits
on top of the trailer floor, there is
no need to cut into the floor for its
installation. There are currently four
vehicles using this application at the
British Airways perishables centre at
Heathrow airport and an additional
six are on order.
Typical installation time is around
12 hours, based on two fitters
working together for six hours
each. This is a 75% reduction in the
traditional, integrated installation
time, which normally takes two
men up to four days. Removal
time for the new system is similarly
shortened to approximately eight
hours, based on two fitters working
together for four hours each.
The total weight of the new
system for a 13.6 metre trailer
De-icing research could help sector
Muttenz-based specialty
chemicals specialist Clariant is
supporting the ZHAW School
of Engineering in Winterthur in a
major Research and Development
collaboration target which hopes
to achieve a breakthrough in
anti-freeze technology. Sectors
such as wind power, refrigeration
and aviation will all benefit from
more reliable cold temperature
performance and cuts in energy
use if trials led by researchers at
the ZHAW to prevent or drastically
minimise surface ice build-up are
successful.
Backed by Clariant, the GEBERT
RUF STIFTUNG, the Swiss Federal
Office of Energy and RETC
Renewable Energy Technology
54 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
N E W S
works out at approximately 1,435
kilogrammes and the weight,
including a typical existing trailer
floor, is around 1,935 kilogrammes.
This compares with the weight of a
conventionally installed PRT in-floor
system of 1,775 kilogrammes. Thus,
payload penalty between the two
is marginal and there is no price
penalty between the in-build kit
and the cost of the new Trailerloda
system.
Trailerloda is designed for self-
assembly and simply clips together
with flexible plastic joints. A typical
standard 13.6 metre system is
built in four sections, each 2,438
millimetres wide, and mounted
directly on to the trailer floor. All
four sections incorporate five lanes
of roller track, comprising three
Centre (a Hamburg-based joint
venture between REpower Systems
AG and Suzlon Energy), the project
focuses on three research areas.
These are anti-adhesion coatings to
prevent ice from sticking to surfaces;
condensation delay, to slow down
the creation of condensation on cold
surfaces; and anti-freeze coatings, to
prevent water freezing on glass.
Clariant’s materials are being used
in all three research areas.
Initial research began in 2007,
aimed at eliminating ice formation
on wind turbine rotor blades. Every
year, the wind power industry
incurs the heavy cost of heating
rotor blades in order to ensure the
continued operation of turbines
during the cold winter months.
sections 3.2 metres long and one
section of 3.7 metres.
Trailerloda utilises Hydraroll
MK21 roller track which is still the
preferred standard in the airfreight
industry, not least because of
its twin roller design. The MK21
track also provides greater
manoeuvrability of ULDs inside
the trailer and it is easier to drive
fork-lift trucks or move pallet
trucks and cages, because of the
smaller apertures in the top plate.
These smaller apertures also help
to prevent débris falling through
to the underfloor area whilst the
enclosed channel design also
protects the airbags from potential
damage. This feature actually
reduces maintenance compared
with a traditional roller track
The successful creation of an
anti-adhesive polymer-based
coating to reduce ice from forming,
or at least minimise the adhesion
of ice so that the vibration of the
rotating blades causes ice to fall off
independently, will be a major step
forward in allowing turbines to work
effectively throughout the year and
avoid high energy costs. Although
various surfaces are still undergoing
tests, results so far indicate new
possibilities to protect turbine
blades from ice formation using this
method.
A new polymer by Clariant for
the refrigeration sector could lead
to appliances using less energy, and
reduce the need for time-consuming
de-icing processes.
installation.
Load capacity of both the MK21 and
the MK4 is 550 kilogrammes per metre
of track, making the load capacity for
an installed Trailerloda floor assembly
around 2,750 kilogrammes per metre.
An added safety feature is that the top
plates of the MK21 track are coated
with polyurethane to give a non-slip
surface for the ULD once the rollers
are down.
Between the roller tracks, special
aluminium floor plates clip together
with a plastic extrusion and then
clip into the main channels of the
roller tracks with galvanised steel
wedges. The floor section is then
bolted or screwed down to the
existing floor of the trailer through
aluminium angles, which slide into
the floor planks.
An end stop assembly,
manufactured from a steel channel
with a heavy steel base, is bolted
to the door end of the trailer. This
has built-in, flip-up pallet stops and
heavy duty impact rollers.
The roller tracks are piped up
from one side to the other through
a quick exhaust valve and the pipes
are subsequently led down one
side of the section to the next.
The air pipes from all four sections
are then routed through the floor
of the vehicle to a Hydraroll air
control box, which is connected
to a single pressure protection
valve air receiver from the trailer’s
suspension.
The research team has created
stable frost-protecting layers that
drastically slow down the formation
of condensation in hot and cold
environments and consequently
slows down the development of ice.
The technology is currently being
tested in a variety of applications,
including freezers.
The creation of an anti-freeze
coating that prevents flowing water
from freezing on glass may open
new doors for the development of
ice-free windscreens and aircraft
windows without the need for
heating elements and de-icers. Tests
indicate that, depending on the
system used, the coatings can ensure
a delay in freezing time of between
one to three hours.

Better baggage system coming
To ensure reliable and quick
baggage handling for the
European Football Championship
2012 in Poland and the Ukraine at
Gdansk airport, general contractor
Hydrobudowa Polska has decided
to use the BEUMER autoverR
baggage transport system.
BEUMER, a leader in the
manufacture of intralogistics will
supply and install a rail system
with a length of 506 metres.
There will be 44 vehicles, of
the so-called BEUMER autocaR
Steps in the right direction
In order to respond to the extreme
demands of special VVIP ground
support equipment, the French group
GATE has designed and delivered
high quality GSE to important
Joloda Hydraroll | De-icing | BEUMER | GATE | February 2011
customers and presidents all over
the world. A specialised department
within the GATE company, namely
GATE GSE, which is located near
Charles de Gaulle airport, works on
type, as well as 20 induction belt
conveyors and 12 destinations.
The BEUMER autoverR transports,
stores and sorts checked baggage
gently, economically, quickly and
reliably. The intelligent BEUMER
autocaR vehicles are equipped
with an on-board controller
and discrete drive unit. They
move autonomously, silently
and independent of each other
through the rail system at a speed
of up to 10 metres a second. The
system is highly accessible and
these briefs. An example is shown
here: a set of very exclusive electrical
passenger steps (or more precisely,
an escalator) that requires just one
operator.
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 55
requires little maintenance, thanks
to the contactless energy supply.
A visual display system and the
host system (a Sort Allocation
Computer) are also part of the
package supplied. It is expected
that a BEUMER service team
will supervise and maintain the
complete baggage handling
system on site for a period in
excess of five years. According
to the company, the system
is scheduled for operation by
February 2012.
Ramp Forum

LOADED CARTRIDGES SPARK

KNEE-JERK REACTION
Is the Department of Homeland Security making a
rod for its back?
Following the media scrutiny of the printer
cartridges that had been packed with explosives,
the body has issued new security directives
aimed at countering any future threat to aircraft.
In addition to disallowing cargo from Yemen and
Somalia, toner and ink cartridges over 16 ounces
have been prohibited on passenger aircraft in both
carry-on bags and checked bags on domestic
and international flights inbound to the US. This
ban apparently also applies to certain inbound
international air cargo shipments as well.
Adding that inbound international mail packages
must be screened individually and be certified to
have come from an established postal shipper, the
Department is, to all intents and purposes, leaning
against an open door.
What next? Banning cartridges merely means that
the terrorist will look to the employment of other
innocuous means of transportation – doesn’t it?

HAVE GUN, WILL (TRY TO) TRAVEL

There seems to be no end to bizarre
behaviour when it comes to what
people believe they can take on
board an aircraft. As if explosives
hidden in printer cartridges didn’t
get enough publicity, a Michigan man
was recently arrested at Chicago’s
O’Hare International airport after
a loaded handgun was allegedly
found in his carry-on luggage. An
officer with the Transportation
Safety Administration spotted
the .38 semi-automatic during the
routine screening process on the
day of his flight. Apparently the gun
was fully loaded, with five rounds
in the magazine and one in the
chamber. No reason was given by
the apprehended traveller for the
carriage of the item.

ILLEGAL PERKS FOR PARISIAN HANDLERS

Paris was in the news recently when
it was revealed that no fewer than
16 baggage handlers at Charles de
Gaulle airport had been convicted
of property theft: in all, passenger
valuables to the tune of ¤450,000
were found to have been pilfered
from bags in transit. The baggage
handlers, who were employed by
Air France-owned Trac-Piste, stole
an array of items including laptops,
iPhones and iPods, video cameras,
jewellery, perfume, GPS equipment,
cash, travellers’ cheques and even
designer shoes. Apparently the
loaders were wily enough to target
certain flights to Switzerland and
northern Italy, since passengers on
these routes tended to carry items
of higher value.

MAN STUNNED BY LOSS OF LUGGAGE AFTER FLIGHT

US airport police have reported that
an irate man returning to Indianapolis
airport, who had lost his luggage, had
to be subdued with a Taser.
According to the airport
police, the passenger returned to
Indianapolis on a late night Delta
flight. After finding none of his
bags on the carousel, he proceeded
to the Delta baggage claim office.
Clearly upset at the loss, there the
man threatened the employee
verbally and said that he was going
to break the windows in the office.
Security was duly contacted
and one of the staff asked the
passenger to leave the office. Upon
his refusal, the officer drew a Taser.
This prompted the passenger to
leave but outside the office he
started to push the second officer.
That persuaded the first officer to
use the Taser and two rounds were
fired before the passenger was
finally brought under control.
As we went to press there was no
update on the passenger’s missing
luggage.

HIGH JINX – OR MERELY MORE MARKETING PLOYS?

In an attempt to get passengers everyone’s attention is focused. taking flights to New Zealand and strategically-positioned
to watch its safety briefings, It has created a safety video in can take instruction from both lifejackets, seatbelts and oxygen
Air New Zealand has hit upon a which members of the cabin male and female staff, who masks in order to preserve their
novel method of ensuring that crew appeared naked. Those boast body-painted uniforms modesty.

SECURITY MEASURES QUESTIONED IN LATIN AMERICA

Despite security checks, a
Colombian boy recently managed
to travel from Bogota to Santiago
without any documents.
The 15-year old managed to
evade a total of five security
control points at Eldorado airport in
Bogota before boarding an Avianca
flight to Santiago: this included
immigration services, airline security
and a private security company.
He apparently took advantage of
distractions to bypass the security
checkpoints on his travels. Once
inside the aircraft he found an
empty seat and remained there for
the rest of the flight.
Needless to say, the incident has
raised concerns over the airport’s
security levels. The boy was finally
detained by Chilean police officers
and taken into custody for further
questioning. He was then sent back
home on another Avianca flight.

Got a story or a comment? Please send your submissions to the Editor: alwyn@groundhandling.com

56 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL

 A D V E R T I S E R S ’ I N D E X
FEBRUARY 2011
AeroMobiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Airport Infra Expo, Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Airport Show, Dubai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Aircraft Maintenance Support Services (AMSS) . . 3
ARINC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
ASIG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC
BIDAir Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Bliss-Fox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Dnata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
DOLL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Douglas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Fraport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OBC
Goldhofer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Telephone: +44 (0) 1892 839200 Facsimile: +44 (0) 1892 839210 E-mail: admin@groundhandling.com
Hitzinger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
JBT AeroTech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Link Aero Trading Agency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Mallaghan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Miloco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
NORD DRIVESYSTEMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Sage Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Schopf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC
Timsan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
TLD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Trepel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
X OPS Sodexi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Zebra Enterprise Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL 57