Tag Archives: Munich Airport

Munich Airport sees clear upward trend in first half of year


Foto: Stephan Goerlich / FMG

Munich Airport issued this statement:

The dynamic upward trend at Munich Airport is reflected in the traffic figures for the first half of 2022: With around 13 million passengers, the entire annual volume for 2021 has already been exceeded in the first six months. Passenger numbers increased more than fivefold compared to the first six months of the previous year. The steep upward trend can be seen when comparing the two quarters: After only around four million passengers in the first quarter of 2022, more than twice as many passengers were handled in the second quarter at around nine million. In June, Munich Airport already reached three-quarters of its volume from the same month of the record year 2019 again. The seat load factor in Munich in June was at a record level of 84%.

Airlines responded to the high demand for flights by significantly expanding their flight capacity from Munich: Whereas only around 40,000 aircraft movements were registered in the first half of 2021, there were over 129,000 take-offs and landings in the first six months of this year โ€“ more than three times as many. In addition, considerably more destinations are now available to passengers in Munich again: Whereas last year around 100 destinations worldwide could be reached from Munich, this summer there will be up to 200 destinations. Freight business at the airport also benefited from the increasing air traffic in Munich, with the total freight volume doubling year-on-year to around 127,000 metric tons.

Electric “elephant” de-ices aircraft at Munich

Munich Airport issued this report:

The fleet of de-icing vehicles at Munich Airport has now received particularly powerful and environmentally friendly support: Since the beginning of the week, the all-electric “Elephant e-BETA” from the Danish manufacturer Vestergaard has been in use at EFM, the company for de-icing and aircraft towing at Munich Airport.

According to the manufacturer, the “Elephant e-BETA” is the first electric de-icing vehicle. The spray arms and nozzles, which are driven by electric motors, perform the de-icing of aircraft silently and effectively. At the heart of the vehicle is a generously dimensioned lithium-ion battery power pack that enables the electric de-icing of around 10 to 15 aircraft. This allows the de-icing vehicle to complete about two to three hours of operation without needing to be recharged.

The vehicle still drives to the de-icing areas with a conventional diesel engine and can therefore be used flexibly, but at the site itself, the engine is switched off and the all-electric de-icing begins. Elephants are known to have great endurance and a special sensitivity: not bad prerequisites for the Elephant e-BETA to achieve good results in the handling of sensitive aircraft in the test phase now underway. Compared with conventional de-icing vehicles, the electric version can avoid up to 87 percent of the CO2emissions caused by the vehicle. The electric de-icing vehicle thus fits in perfectly with Munich Airport’s climate strategy, which envisages the airport operating in a CO2-neutral manner by 2030 at the latest.