transparent panels ensure that the occupants are contained within the vehicle’s confines whilst any opening door automatically cuts off the engine power. Sensors around the vehicle lessen the chances of collision or accidental impact and the passengers benefit from seatbelts and a comprehensive roll cage. The driver’s pedals are shielded by a metal ridge, ensuring stray bags do not interfere with the controls. The gel battery-driven engine is quickly charged through a simple plug and flex and the engine is governed, allowing for smooth pulling away and controlled descents. This latter facet is quite important at the new T5 where there are plenty of gradients to negotiate. In all, some 25 of these innovative buggies have been purchased by OCS and have duly been installed at the terminal. Development, because it involved OCS, the HSE and BAA, has meant that the end product is truly comprehensive in its scope. Indeed, after some months of running this GSE, OCS has reported no snags or shortcomings in their operation. It is now looking forward to the summer season to see these vehicles really prove their worth. Outside Europe AirAsia has looked to set the benchmark in terms of being a universally accessible low cost carrier by announcing that disabled guests travelling with it will henceforth be able to fly with greater ease, thanks to the airline’s newly acquired ambulifts. The airline is placing one ambulift in its low cost terminal hub in Kuala Lumpur and another in its Kota Kinabalu hub. Previously, disabled guests needed the assistance of AirAsia’s ground staff to physically carry them on board the aircraft but taking serious consideration of the barriers faced by the disabled community, the low cost carrier decided to purchase the ambulifts, which will be used to transport the PRMs directly from the ground to the aircraft and vice versa. In addition, the airline has also acquired aisle wheelchairs to be used with the ambulifts and onboard the aircraft. For extra support, AirAsia’s in-flight lavatories are already equipped with special built-in handles for the PRM. GHI JUNE 2008 49 Recently, Aviation Equipment Resources sold an example to Newquay and others to Worldwide Flight Solutions for use in its US operation. There has also been interest from American and Canadian airlines, along with Norwegian enquiries. At the time of writing, with the application ready to go, the only thing holding back sales is the customer. Faced with the new PRM legislation, there appears to be an element of caution amongst handlers, some of whom have to commit themselves to this, or indeed more traditional technology. The incipient legislation is likely to be strictly enforced and so handlers will ignore it at their peril. Yet another UK manufacturer with an interest in the sector is that of Airside. Following huge interest in its PRM Eagle Hoist at Munich last October, in March Airside GSE embarked on a roadshow to Germany with the Australian-made device to show off its capabilities. The trip lasted a week and embraced three airports (Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Hannover): each was able to test the cabin hoist for a day and a couple of the airports subsequently asked for longer periods in which to run and assess the novel equipment. Airside’s Mike Cardy relates that he could have sold the demonstration unit several times over, such was the level of interest exhibited. Its Eagle hoist has now been sold to Krackow airport and next on the cards are some sales to OCS at Heathrow for use in Terminal 3. Mike Cardy stresses that the airline’s customers will need a little education on the use of the hoist, since the PRM has to be located on the right hand side of the aircraft. The S-MAX Amazon may sound a bit of a mouthful but this handy piece of PRM kit is manufactured by specialist AAT. Light in weight, narrow yet strong enough to be able to cope with a PRM weighing up to 160 kilogrammes, this stair climber was originally introduced back in 2005, following an intensive study of the marketplace and the requirements of this specific sector. A measure of the equipment’s success can be gauged by the fact that it is currently seeing use in most UK airports; moreover, the manufacturer has chalked up sales around Europe as well as in South Africa, Eastern Europe, the West Indies and Polynesia. Company spokesperson Peter Wingrave points out that the PRM aid really came into being following the growing concerns over the numbers of smaller aircraft which were being handled remotely. “Take away airbridge access and you begin to experience difficulties,” he states. He also refers to the fact that the device works on several levels, in that it satisfies the demands of both the DDA and the HSE. Capable of being used with any aircraft save the Jetstream, and requiring just two staff (although it can be operated with one), it represents a costeffective solution to anyone looking to provide PRM assistance. For services provider OCS, 2008 has been something of a milestone for this year has seen it realise a project that was begun around 12 months ago. Faced with somewhat outmoded PRM buggy equipment, equipment that had not really been modified or adapted for many years, and the fact that Heathrow’s Terminal 5 was due to open in March 2008, the handler went back to basics and designed a new PRM buggy from scratch. As would be expected with something designed from a blank page, the new equipment, which is built by Bradshaw Electric Vehicles, bristles with clever touches. Lightweight

50 JUNE 2008 GHI safety briefi ng ramp For us in the Northern hemisphere it’s that time when the increasing greenery reminds us that summer is on the way and, hopefully, when you read this, the de-icing season should be a distant memory. Time, therefore, for me to start reminding all readers of the need not to let standards slip because of vacations and temporary workers. Those readers in the Southern hemisphere should have a look at last year’s editions and start preparing for winter. And then, of course, it’s time for my usual plea for information: we can all learn from mistakes made by others, but only if we’re told about those mistakes! My grateful thanks, however, to those stalwarts who do keep me in the loop. If your organisation has any information that could benefi t the industry by being widely circulated, in strict anonymity, please forward to: Neale Millett, Head of Global Airside & Standards, DHL Global Aviation, De Kleetlaan 1, B-1831 Diegem-Machelen, Belgium. E-mail: Neale.Millett@dhl.com Fax: +32 2 718.99.50 First off, several of my regular contributors have sent me a rare collection of pictures that graphically illustrate some of the strange things that can occur on the ramp. The strangest that I’ve seen in a long time is featured fi rst. I cannot even begin to imagine what happened here and would love to hear from somebody who knows but, as can be seen, it certainly didn’t result in an on time departure. Nighttime, confused by lights, lack of concentration; one could speculate endlessly but it just goes to reinforce that much quoted adage: expect the unexpected. On a lighter note, it also poses the question of what piece of GSE you get if you cross a tug with a belt loader. Answers to this column, please! Avoiding tug trauma Over the limit? One of Mr Boeing’s popular narrow-bodies was taxi-ing on to stand when the wingtip struck a set of steps which had been positioned ready for disembarkation. The result was the removal of a static wick from the wing but it could well have been far more serious. As the reconstruction photograph shows, the wheels of the steps were just behind the equipment line but the platform was protruding well over. Just a reminder here: the equipment line is there to ensure just such incidents do not occur and must be respected by all the equipment, not just the wheels. I can’t see how much time or money was going to be saved by positioning the steps in such a manner but that was, obviously, wiped out by the damage that was caused. Then again, maybe it was just sheer laziness on behalf of the ramp staff, who wanted to cut down the distance they had to push the steps. Whatever the reason, this was a needless incident which, as usual, could have been avoided by simply following the rules. Tip and run Yet more wing tips. Life is confusing enough for the ramp tramp without adding to his or her problems. We all know that airports are marking up more and more multi-aircraft type stands so as to be able to increase capacity and far be it from me to pass judgement on that. However, the next picture shows just how easily a little confusion can result in a major incident. As I understand it, the aircraft on the right of the picture had been repositioned and towed on to stand but on to the wrong line. No-one noticed the error until the aircraft on the left taxi-ied on to stand following the correct line of the adjacent bay. One wonders why, if this was a commercial arrival, one of the ramp staff who should have been waiting at head of stand, didn’t spot the impending danger and stop the taxi-ing aircraft with hand signals. Maybe they did and the crew didn’t see them, I don’t know those details but, back in the old days, I was always taught to watch “my” aircraft on and off the stand, no matter how routine the arrival or departure. If anybody has more information to share on this one, I’d be happy to hear from them. Tails you lose… Almost as I’m writing this I am getting reports of a minor fender bender involving a couple of RJ types. Again I have no explanation for the reasons of how this coming together occurred