Defense and support services company VT Group (VT) has begun a contract with BAA to manage Edinburgh Airport’s fleet of vehicles and ground support equipment (GSE).
The contract with BAA will see VT ensure the airport’s entire fleet of 170 vehicles and equipment is available for deployment and ranges from cars, coaches and trucks to specialist Carmichael Viper emergency fire appliances and Mercedes-Benz Unimog 4x4 snow plows.
VT will provide 24-hour, seven days a week fleet management, availability and logistics across BAA Edinburgh, backed by mobile support vehicles.
Edinburgh Airport serves over 40 airlines flying to more than 100 destinations worldwide with domestic carriers including British Airways, easyJet, flyglobespan, BMI, flybe and Jet2. International airlines include Continental, Delta, Ryanair, Aer Lingus, KLM, Lufthansa and Air France — handling more than nine million passengers in 2008.
Gordon Reynolds, VT Group contract director, commented: “We are pleased to announce our partnership with BAA Edinburgh, a key airport operator for us and is in addition to the airlines and handling markets in which we already operate.
“In the current ground handling climate, airport authorities, airlines and ground handlers are looking for innovative ways to manage their GSE fleets in order to lower costs and focus on their own core business. Our partnership will see BAA make a range of efficiency improvements while increasing vehicle availability during peak periods.
“This announcement not only strengthens our growing portfolio in the GSE sector, but will see VT’s expertise deliver value and savings on a “service availability” basis. VT’s GSE fleet management model is the future for our industry.
“Our work with British Airways has proved that cradle-to-grave ownership of GSE by a trusted partner can deliver long-term business benefits and economies from equipment specification to provision,” he adds.
VT will maintain the BAA fleet from a dedicated location at the airport featuring 10 work bays, tire replacement equipment and VOSA approved MOT classification capabilities.
