TREPEL Airport Equipment from Tauberbischofsheim (Baden-Württemberg) has won this year's German Renewables Award in the “Project of the Year” category. The prestigious award for developments that use renewable energy was also presented in 2024 by the Erneuerbare Energie Clusteragentur GmbH in Hamburg.

TREPEL took part in the competition for the first time and received the award straight away. The award went to the TREPEL CHARGER 380e aircraft tug, which towed an electrically powered Boeing 787 with a total weight of 251 tons more than 1.5 kilometers to its take-off position. Without any CO2 emissions!

“We are very proud of this success. The entire team has demonstrated its innovative strength and earned the award. Our strategy of bringing electrically powered vehicles to the market for the high-performance sector is paying off,” said a delighted CEO Roland Hartwig after the award ceremony in Hamburg.

The TREPEL CHARGER 380e aircraft tow tractor is currently the most powerful vehicle in its class. The electric motor has an output of 415 hp. This allows the CHARGER 380e to tow up to 380 tons and lift up to 41 tons. However, the vehicle not only avoids CO2 emissions through its electric drive. It also helps to ensure that aircraft on the ground produce fewer emissions – up to one ton per maneuver. The successful test, which has now been honored with the German Renewables Award 2024, took place at Amsterdam Airport in May 2023. The 380e towed a Boeing 787 on a scheduled flight to Los Angeles to its take-off position on the airfield with zero CO2 emissions. This empirical proof under real conditions has now led to TREPEL Airport Equipment GmbH winning the German Renewables Award 2024.

„Our electric tug takes the machines to starting positions that are often kilometers away. The engines do not have to be switched on. This is highly efficient, as the aircraft require an extremely large amount of fuel on the ground,” explains the CEO. Here is an example calcu-lation: If every aircraft at the ten largest airports in Europe were serviced in this way, the CO2 footprint of a large city with 250,000 inhabitants could be avoided every year.

Strong contribution to a low-emission airport

The CHARGER 380e has therefore attracted the attention of airport operators. According to the climate protection portal.aero of the German Aviation Association, German airports had reduced their emissions by around 20 percent by 2019. “But they must continue to reduce them in order not to jeopardize the number of take-offs and landings,” emphasized Roland Hartwig. Traffic on the airfield is one of the starting points – and therefore also the aircraft tugs.

The CHARGER 380 was developed in 2020, the prototypes were then intensively tested in use and the new product has been on the market since this year. Global demand is already high due to its low emissions and consistent performance.

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For further information

Julian Großkinsky, Business Development Manager
MAFI Transport-Systeme GmbH, Hochhäuser Straße 18, 97941 Tauberbischofsheim
Phone: +49 9341 899 209, E-Mail: julian.grosskinsky@mafi.de