Munich Airport aims to use natural resources sparingly. To do so, it relies on water, energy and waste management, less paper and the recycling of de-icers.
Resource protection
De-icing and recycling
Munich Airport is one of the few airports in the world that collects dripping de-icers when de-icing aircraft in the winter, recycles them on site, and reuses them. Depending on the weather conditions, a total of approximately 2,500 to 9,000 metric tons of aircraft de-icer is used in one winter, around 40 to 60 percent of which comes from recycling.
The recycled share no longer has to be cleaned in the Eitting treatment plant of the Erdinger Moos wastewater association, but instead can be reused as new de-icer. This is both an economic advantage, and also helps protect the environment and conserve resources.
Aircraft fuel supply
At Munich Airport, aircraft are supplied with fuel with an underground refuelling system.
The fuel is pumped through underground pipes directly from nearby storage tanks to the park positions on the apron, where the aircraft are serviced with tankless refuelling vehicles known as hydrant dispensers.
This eliminates the need for taking tank trucks to the aircraft, which considerably reduces the risk of accidents on the apron.In addition, emissions from a fuel truck are eliminated because there is a pipeline running from the fuel storage facility to the aircraft.
Key facts on the fuel storage facility and underground refuelling system at Munich Airport:
- Four 4,500 m³ storage tanks
- One 12,000 m³ storage tank
- One 14,800 m³ storage tank
- Total storage: approx. 45,000 m³
- Delivery routes: By rail with tank wagons and via pipeline system from the Feldkirchen storage facility
- Hydrant system with 20 km network and approximately 500 fuel pits
- Current facility operator: Skytanking, under contract with Flughafen München GmbH
