dnata will add four fully electric Cobus VEGA buses to its passenger-transfer fleet at Rome Fiumicino Airport, with the vehicles expected to enter service by mid-November. The ground handler will be the first to operate the model, using the buses to carry passengers between terminals and aircraft. Their higher capacity than standard airport buses is intended to improve apron transfers and support aircraft turnaround operations.
The VEGA buses feature updated climate-control systems and redesigned access doors to speed boarding and disembarkation. They produce no tailpipe emissions in operation. dnata plans dedicated training for drivers and operations staff before the buses enter service; it has not disclosed their individual purchase cost.
The additions will expand Fiumicino’s fleet of 40 passenger buses, 23 of which are electric. They are part of dnata’s Italian fleet-modernisation programme, which has involved more than €30 million of investment over the past three years in more than 550 units of motorised ground-support equipment at Fiumicino, Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate. Across its Italian operations, dnata has more than 1,000 motorised ground-support units, with over 60% electrically powered.