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the fairport

Electromobility

STRzero – our path to zero emissions

Stuttgart Airport saves around 300,000 litres of diesel every year. This is made possible by the increasing number of electric vehicles that are replacing diesel vehicles on the apron. They significantly reduce local emissions, which has a positive impact on the environment and improves the working environment for employees. Electric vehicles are quiet and do not emit any exhaust gases.

Ambitious targets for apron traffic

As early as 1991, Stuttgart Airport deployed the first low-consumption hybrid baggage tractor on the apron. This marked the start of a continuous transition to electric mobility.

Since then, the following has applied:

where economic efficiency, environmental compatibility and operational safety go hand in hand, we rely on electric power.

We have tested the practical suitability of electric handling equipment in various research projects. Our electric fleet has grown steadily over the years.

We achieved an important milestone in 2018:

all passenger and baggage transport at Stuttgart Airport has been battery-powered and emission-free ever since. Within 10 years, we have reduced CO₂ emissions from our apron fleet by over 86 per cent. By 2030, aircraft handling at the airport is to be climate neutral.

Large electric charging network at the airport

Road traffic on arrival and departure accounts for more than a third of the airport’s carbon footprint. That is why we are also focusing on this area. By continuously expanding the charging network in our car parks, we are creating incentives to travel in more climate-friendly electric vehicles.

Measures and projects already underway

Zero-emission floor power supply via e-GPUs and stationary systems

By 2030, Stuttgart Airport aims to operate all apron vehicles and equipment emission-free. An important component is supplying the aircraft at the remote positions with stationary ground power.

Wherever structurally and economically feasible, we intend to equip the apron with a stationary ground power supply system by 2025. Where gaps still exist, mobile, battery-powered e-GPUs (electric ground power units) will be used in future. We have been using two of these electric devices since the end of 2024, with six more to follow in 2025. Even before the project began, 38 parking spaces on the north side were equipped with stationary ground power units.

Compared to the diesel GPUs previously used, these systems improve energy efficiency by around 80 percent. E-GPUs and stationary ground power units offer clear advantages: they have a long service life, reduce noise and do not emit exhaust gases – creating better working conditions on the apron.

Project period: 2025

In a one-year project, we are equipping the remaining parking spaces on the south side, including Cargo City, with stationary ground power supply systems. This will enable us to achieve our goal of supplying aircraft on the ground with sustainable, emission-free electricity, largely by the end of 2025.

The project is funded by the programme for market activation of alternative technologies for climate-friendly and environmentally friendly ground power supply for aircraft at airports (Ground Power Directive) with a total of eur 2.4 million from the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport (BMDV).

Objectives:

Installation of a stationary power supply with 400 Hz systems on the southern apron
Procurement and commissioning of six e-GPUs

Funding programme:

Funded by:

Federal Ministry
for Digital
and Transport

based on a resolution of the German Bundestag

Supported by:

NOW GmbH
National Organization
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology

NOW! Website

Press release from 26.09.2024

Clean ground flow for the air cargo apron

Press release from 26.09.2024

finalize! – The first fully electric tanker truck, additional electric apron vehicles and the first battery storage systems

The final major step on the road to emission-free apron traffic by 2030: after Stuttgart Airport has already converted large parts of its ground handling fleet and all passenger buses and baggage tractors to battery-powered electric vehicles, the electrification of the refuelling fleet and other heavy commercial vehicles that were previously powered by diesel is now following. The project is called finalize! and is part of the STRzero climate strategy.

As with the conversion of its passenger bus fleet to electric drives, the airport is also breaking new ground in the electrification of its refuelling fleet – together with its partners Skytanking and the Institute for Power Electronics and Electrical Drive Systems (ISEA) at RWTH Aachen University. A fully electric tanker weighing around 52 tonnes is a particular challenge. Innovative and new solutions are therefore at the heart of this research and development project.

The project is another important milestone on the road to climate-neutral aircraft handling at Stuttgart Airport. By 2022, 39 per cent of the apron fleet was already electric. By 2026, a total of 30 heavy commercial vehicles are to be added to the electric fleet as part of the project. The airport serves as a live demonstrator – not only for other airports, but also for refuelling service providers and logistics companies.

The total cost of the joint project amounts to around EUR 5.9 million. The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection is supporting the project with around EUR 2.8 million.

Project period:

1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025

Objectives:

Electrification of the remaining largest diesel consumers at Stuttgart Airport
Increasing the technological maturity of heavy airport-specific commercial vehicles
Determination of the total operating costs and environmental impact of vehicles over their entire life cycle – by recording technical data during handling operations
Research and testing of optimised charging strategies and introduction of intelligent charging management
Improvement of local air quality, particularly with regard to health and safety for employees involved in aircraft handling
Acting as a live demonstrator for the national and international network of airport operators and refuelling service providers

Press release from 01.03.2024 (German) Press release from 10.04.2025 (German)

Funding programme:

Supported by:

Federal Ministry
for Economic Affairs
and Climate Protection

based on a resolution of the German Bundestag

scale-up! – The electric fleet is growing

By 2020, Stuttgart Airport wanted to reduce CO₂ emissions from handling operations by 80 per cent compared to 2009. Thanks to significant investments in e-mobility, stationary ground power and synthetic, climate-neutral diesel, this target was achieved in 2019 – and even exceeded. To this end, the existing electric fleet was expanded by 40 additional vehicles within three years. This was achieved in the scale-up! project.

We achieved an important milestone back in 2018: since then, our entire fleet of passenger buses and baggage tugs has been fully electric. Passengers and their baggage have been travelling between the terminal and aircraft without producing any exhaust emissions ever since

Our practical experience has shown that electric vehicles are ideally suited to handling operations. First, because the distances at the airport are short – a passenger bus only covers around 60 km a day on the apron. Second, because the batteries can be recharged regularly at night and during breaks between shifts.

scale-up! followed on from the already completed efleet project. The larger number of vehicles enabled us to provide more comprehensive data. This enabled concrete statements to be made about the ecological and economic effects of battery-powered handling equipment in airport operations – for example, regarding charging times. The entire life cycle of electric vehicles was taken into account. The results should also be transferable to other airports worldwide.

Project period:

1 September 2016 to 31 August 2019

Objectives:

Commissioning of 40 additional electric vehicles and expansion of the charging infrastructure
Collection of data on the technological maturity, operational behaviour, economic efficiency and environmental impact of electric vehicles
Holistic life cycle assessment of battery-powered handling vehicles
Investigation of the links between electric fleets and their impact on energy supply
Development of a roadmap for the further expansion of electric mobility at Stuttgart Airport

Funding programme:

Li-Fleet – batteries put to the test

The lead-acid batteries previously used at Stuttgart Airport have proven themselves in everyday handling operations. In order to test an alternative energy storage system, the Li-Fleet pilot project added a lithium-ion baggage tractor to the apron fleet. One of the objectives was to find out how the two battery types differ in terms of service life and charging time.

During the project, a guide was also developed for other companies to facilitate the transition to electric drives.

Project period:

15 December 2015 to 30 June 2017

Objectives:

Preparing for structural change towards battery-powered special-purpose vehicles
Developing and implementing guidelines for the transition to electric vehicles and new battery technology

Project partners:

Funding programme:

CO₂-neutral passenger transport at European airports – focus on electric buses

At Stuttgart Airport, buses mostly transport passengers to the aircraft and back to the terminal. As part of the Decarbonised Passenger Transport at European Airports project, the airport has purchased six eCobus3000 buses to test whether it is possible to transport all passengers using purely electric vehicles. The results show that it works! At the same time, a fast-charging infrastructure was set up with support from the European Union.

Project period:

1 October 2014 to 31 December 2016

Objectives:

Determining the availability of electric passenger buses and charging infrastructure
Calculation of total operating costs
Investigation of energy efficiency and CO₂ savings
Proof of transferability to other European airports
Results:
No operational restrictions on passenger transport
Improvement in energy efficiency by up to 70 per cent
Availability comparable to diesel buses
High acceptance among drivers
Good transferability of the results in Stuttgart to other EU airports

Funding programme:

efleet – the start of electrification

With efleet, Stuttgart Airport launched a pilot project in collaboration with project partners as part of the German government’s “Electric Mobility Showcase Programme”. To test the drive technology in dispatch operations, the airport purchased six electric vehicles and the same number of charging points. Pushbacks, conveyor belts, baggage and cargo tractors, and passenger buses were used. The aim was to determine the economic and ecological effects – such as the life cycle costs of the vehicles – through practical use.

During the three-year fleet project, the battery-powered vehicles towed around 12,000 aircraft, transported approximately 1.5 million pieces of baggage and carried around 300,000 passengers. The electric mobility showcase at Stuttgart Airport clearly demonstrated that airports are ideal locations for the use of battery-powered electric vehicles.

Project period:

1 March 2013 to 29 February 2016

Objectives:

Establishment of suitable charging infrastructure
Recording technical data during dispatch operations
Determination of the total operating costs and environmental impact of the vehicles compared to their diesel counterparts

Results:

Suitability of vehicles for 2-shift operation
Improvement in energy efficiency of 50 to 80 per cent compared to diesel engines
Comparable or partially better availability than diesel vehicles
High acceptance among drivers
Significant noise reduction in ground handling
Airports are particularly well suited for the use of electric mobility due to short travel distances

Project partners:

Funding programme:

Contact persons for e-mobility on the apron

Martin Hofmann

Projektleiter luftseitige E-Mobilität, Flughafen Stuttgart

efleet@stuttgart-airport.com

Diehl Theresa

Leiterin Sustainability Communications, Flughafen Stuttgart

Public charging network – Travel to Stuttgart Airport by electric car

The expansion of publicly accessible electric charging facilities at Stuttgart Airport was funded by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure in 2017. A total of 33 new charging points were created as part of the funding programme. Seven of these connections belong to state-of-the-art fast charging stations, where the latest generation of vehicles can be charged in the shortest possible time.

Vehicle batteries that support this technology can be recharged with up to 150 kilowatts of power during a short stop at the direct current connections for fast charging. The electricity used for charging comes from 100 per cent renewable sources.

Good to know: Free charging facilities are guaranteed for all passengers.

Funding programme:

STRzero Truck Charger – First charging stations for electric trucks

In the STRzero Truck Charger project, Stuttgart Airport has installed charging stations for electric trucks for the first time. The four charging points offer up to 400 kilowatts for high-power charging and 150 kilowatts for fast charging. They are located on the south side of the airport grounds and are available to local freight forwarders and freight service providers.

As a fairport, Stuttgart Airport is committed to making ground logistics as environmentally friendly as possible. The new charging stations support this approach by promoting sustainable and clean freight transport at the airport.

The expansion of the charging infrastructure during the STRzero Truck Charger project was funded by the "Electric Mobility Funding Guidelines" of the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport (BMDV). NOW GmbH is responsible for coordination, and the project is being implemented by the project executing organisation Jülich (PtJ).

Funding programme: