This week PLH Aviation Services begins refueling aircraft with a new electric-powered 3-ton truck. The truck chassis was developed by Canadian Electric Vehicles (CEV) of Errington BC on Vancouver Island. CEV has produced over 60 of these 3-ton chassis over the last 11 years but this is the first one to be used in Canada.
The trucks use an Isuzu cab and chassis, have a payload of 6,000 pounds and have a speed of 40 kph. Each of these Environmentally Friendly Refueling Vehicles is powered by a 96-volt AC motor and a 30 kw battery pack. The battery bank is charged from grid power and can be charged in off-peak times, taking between 4-6 hours. Electric drive means zero emissions, no engine idling, low operating cost as well as smooth and quiet running.
Randy Holmquist, President of Canadian Electric Vehicles was on hand at Vancouver International Airport for the unveiling of the new vehicle “We have these all over the world so it is fantastic that after 11 years of building these in Canada that we finally have one in use in Canada. I hope we can see more of these at airports across the country.”
In 2000 Canadian Electric Vehicles was approached by PLH to design and build an electric powered aircraft refueling truck for its Los Angeles airport operations. The first 12 trucks produced were for the U.S. market. Currently, 60 of these 3-ton trucks have been converted and are in use at airports in North America, Europe, Middle East and Australia.
Canadian Electric Vehicles (CEV) has been designing and manufacturing electric vehicles and electric vehicle components for over 20 years. Vehicles in service range in size from three ton aircraft refueling and LAV trucks to the Might-E Tug, an electric towing unit which tows a variety of carts and equipment for hospital food and laundry carts to industrial and military carts weighing up to 10,000 pounds. The latest innovation, a kit to convert Ford Ranger fleet vehicles to electric has been well received by both municipal and private fleet operators in BC. The primary CEV product is the Might-E Truck, a zero emission custom heavy duty electric utility vehicle which is used at locations such as universities, military bases, parks and airports.
