Catania Airport, sitting right at the foot of the volcano, had no choice but to shut down completely. For three days, the runways had been dark and silent for three days, covered in ash. This is when Aebi Schmidt's machines came into action.
Seven Aebi Schmidt machines for the airport of Catania
Clearing volcanic ash from an airport is far more complex than it might seem. The ash is extremely fine-grained and abrasive, wearing down components at a far higher rate than in normal operations. Parts such as suction nozzles, suction fans and hoppers take a particular beating. Maintenance intervals have to be shortened significantly, and a high-performance filtering system is essential to prevent fine ash particles from being released back into the air.
At Catania Airport, cleaning operations are carried out across different areas of the airport. Four Schmidt AS 990 high-capacity sweepers are deployed for large-scale cleaning operations, while two Schmidt Cleango 500 and one Schmidt Swingo 200+ are used for cleaning terminal areas, access roads, aprons and other airport facilities.
Around-the-clock service
All seven machines have been in operation around the clock over the past few days to clear the volcanic ash as quickly as possible. In such an exceptional situation, it is crucial that the machines remain reliably available. Aebi Schmidt Italia ensures this through a network of authorised workshops and a continuous on-call service.
With high workloads and extended operating hours, the service team is on hand to get the machines back in operation quickly. This allows the cleaning work to continue without unnecessary interruptions and the affected areas to be cleared for airport operations as quickly as possible.