Almost half a million passengers and more than 50,000 tons of freight were transported through Linz Airport in Linx, Austria in 2018. This makes it the fifth largest airport in Austria in terms of passenger traffic and the second largest in terms of freight transport.
PANTHERs aRFF vehicles
As an airport of this category, it needs two high-performance aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) vehicles - which is why two Rosenbauer PANTHERs are doing their duty in Linz. An additional Rosenbauer ARFF vehicle is available as a replacement, which has a capacity of 7,000 liters of extinguishing agent and also meets the special requirements of the work environment.
The fleet has also included two emergency vehicles, a tank firefighting vehicle and a 40-year-old rescue vehicle
So far, the fleet has also included two emergency vehicles, a tank firefighting vehicle and a 40-year-old rescue vehicle. With the exception of one command vehicle, Rosenbauer also supplied all of these. Since both PANTHERs now also have a dry powder unit, the tank firefighting vehicle with its 500 kg powder storage tank was no longer necessary to meet the special requirements of airport safety.
Rosenbauer AT
In the course of replacing the still fully functional but, after 40 years, no longer up-to-date vehicle, especially in the area of operator ergonomics, the new Rosenbauer AT was also able to replace the old tank firefighting vehicle. The vehicle, based on a MAN TGM 18.340, thus shines as a perfect all-rounder that effortlessly masters both firefighting and transport tasks - in municipal as well as airport use.
In addition, the AT can also be deployed outside the airport grounds. If, for example, they were deployed on the access road to the airport area, it would now be possible for the Linz Airport Fire Department to support the surrounding fire departments without any problems.
Easy operation, high performance
Why did they choose Rosenbauer at Linz Airport? On the one hand, the experience with the manufacturer over the past 60 years has been good, and on the other, the outstanding operability of the AT was the decisive factor. Clemens Arzt, one of the airport operations managers in Linz and also commander of the airport fire department, sees a big benefit here.
Since the AT is virtually an off-the-shelf vehicle, there are no problems at all with operation"
Clemens said, "85% of my firefighters are volunteers from many different districts. However, since the AT is virtually an off-the-shelf vehicle, there are no problems at all with operation“. Arzt also praises the service and the benefits of obtaining all components for fire protection tasks - from the vehicle to the boots - from a single supplier. He adds, "It's fast and everything works. The price to performance ratio is just right“.
Vehicle fleet modernization
Even though the acquisition of the AT noticeably modernizes the vehicle fleet and makes absolute sense by saving two older vehicles, no hasty investments were made. "The planning took more than 6 years," says Clemens Arzt. Since Linz Airport already had positive experiences procuring equipment through the Bundesbeschaffungsgesellschaft (Austrian Federal Procurement Company) - this is a platform for submitting bids for certain tenders with the approach also chosen for the Rosenbauer AT.
In September, the Rosenbauer AT went into operation at Linz Airport, ensuring greater safety there with immediate effect and making life easier for firefighters. Rosenbauer is a globally renowned manufacturer and provider of fire service technology, fire safety equipment and solutions. The company supplies the global firefighting sector, covering over 100 countries with a wide range of custom fire and rescue apparatus equipment, vehicles and services.
