The first Euro VI-compliant Mercedes-Benz Econic Natural Gas Technology (NGT) has been delivered to Vienna International Airport. The natural-gas-powered truck will operate as a catering truck equipped with a lifting mechanism manufactured by Doll. Econic’s low cab enables a very low delivery height from catering vehicle to plane, which means that widespread types of aircraft, from the Boeing 737 to the Airbus A 380, can be served. This is because a part of the vehicle superstructure is located above the cab, according to the automaker.

With the new Econic NGT, Vienna Airport is also setting new standards of environmental compatibility – the CO₂ emissions of the gas-fuelled engine are around 20 percent lower than those of a diesel engine. When powered by biogas the Econic is actually CO₂ neutral, according to the automaker

The Mercedes-Benz Econic is equipped with an Allison automatic transmission as standard. This allows the driver to fully concentrate on driving and traffic, benefiting safety on the airport apron.

Apart from the Econic NGT, the Vienna airport authorities also opted for five Unimog U 530 trucks, whose gross vehicle weight of 16.5 tons and 299 hp engines make them the most powerful variants of the so-called Unimog implement carrier model series, according to the automaker.

One of the five machines features a road sweeper attachment manufactured by Trilety and also a permanent magnet to remove metal parts from the airfield. The other four Unimog U 530s are intended for winter services and are equipped with snow blower-cutters made by Kahlbacher. In 2015, the airport of Vienna already commissioned two Unimog U 427s with salt/grit spreaders (made by Aebi-Schmidt) and Kahlbacher snow plows, in order to secure safe winter operation on the airport apron, taxi- and runways, according to the automaker.