British Airways has announced a raft of measures designed to make its ground operations at London Heathrow airport more sustainable by reducing emissions.
The UK carrier said it was making a “multi-million-pound” investment to continue overhauling its fleet of ground vehicles at Heathrow, including vans, cars, cargo transporters and passenger steps, which are being “gradually” replaced by hybrid or electric alternatives.
BA added that 90 per cent of its vehicles and ground equipment was already electric, hybrid or used more sustainable hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) fuel.
The airline said it was also transitioning towards a full fleet of electric and hybrid passenger buses, with a charging park for these vehicles now being developed. This will involve phasing out all 38 current diesel-powered buses over the next two years.
Tom Moran, BA’s director of Heathrow, added: “We are committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner and our focus isn’t just about reducing emissions in the air, but on the ground too.
“This major investment into our vehicles at Heathrow is our largest investment in more sustainable airport ground operations to date and is part of our wider environmental objective to minimise emissions from our airside ground operation.”
BA’s moves to decarbonise its ground operations are part of a range of initiatives the airline is implementing through its £7 billion transformation plan over the next three years. This included the announcement of new seats, routes and digital developments earlier this month.