Global growth in air travel is increasing demand for airport catering trucks. But improving sustainability, safety and efficiency are also major drivers
Surging air travel and evolving passenger preferences, the ever-expanding size and range of new aircraft, increasing requirements to curb airport carbon emissions, and a global drive to reduce airside incidents and accidents are fuelling a huge appetite for more and better airport catering trucks.
While the core reason for expanding these specialised fleets is to carry more catering to more passengers on more flights, sustainability, safety and operational savings have all assumed much greater importance and demanded more attention since the end of the pandemic.
Growing demand
“Technological advances, changing airline demands, and stricter environmental standards are leading manufacturers and airport operators to rethink traditional ground support equipment strategies,” observes Lucintel, a US-based industrial analysis group. “From electrification and automation to data-driven fleet optimisation and modular designs, these trends are redefining how catering services are delivered on the tarmac.”
Beyond natural traffic growth, the evolution of aircraft and changes in their deployment are upending historic fleet use patterns and, by extension, catering logistics, creating more demand for onboard supplies and greater delivery capacity on the ground.
There’s also an increasing shift to catering “premiumisation,” adds DO & CO, which supports 60 airlines globally from 33 catering centres. The Austria-based supplier achieved 26% net sales growth last financial year by expanding its airline portfolio, increasing flight supply for both new and existing customers, and diversifying its catering products.
Airlines are upgrading catering in first and business classes to satisfy increasing demand for broader dining choices. There’s also an added layer of catering requirements with the introduction of premium economy cabins for a growing number of international flights.
New options are being developed to accommodate differing economy class service levels, from full-fare, full-service offerings to unbundled product enabling travellers to customise their meals.
These changes require not only more catering truck capacity, but greater capabilities such as variable temperatures and segmented transportation of different catering packages.
Greater use of airside vehicles drives greater requirements to contain harmful emissions by replacing diesel-powered fleets with low- or no-emission units.
There’s also a major focus on reducing airside accidents, which have soared at great cost since the pandemic in part due to the loss of both staff and experience, and to much higher workloads as market recovery has eclipsed the ability to manage it.
And then there is the ever-present and intensifying pressure to rein in operating costs, not just through more efficient practices but also increased use of technological aids such as automated loading and unloading systems and programmes to optimise the routes driven between catering centres and aircraft.
To accommodate these and other changing metrics, airport catering trucks are rapidly evolving, with suppliers of both new and used vehicles rapidly pivoting to supply not just more vehicles but also more modern versions.
High-profile manufacturers including Mallaghan, DOLL, Aviogei, Miles, Aeromobiles, SOVAM and China’s Jiangsu Tianyi Aviation are among many rapidly reworking their offerings to accommodate evolving requirements as well as growing demand.
Over the next decade, says industrial research group Fact.MR, the value of the global airport catering truck market is expected to more than double, averaging an annual growth rate of 7.2% from US$10.8 billion in 2024 to $22.6 billion in 2035. Other analysts differ in detail, but all agree that the trend is up.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has forecast that passenger journeys taken on its 300 member airlines, carrying around 80% of scheduled global air traffic, will at least double during the next 20 years from just under 5 billion this year to around 10 billion in 2045.
And Airports Council International (ACI World), the global umbrella organisation for 2,181 airports, expects 9.8 billion travellers this year, reflecting not just traffic on IATA carriers, but also vast volumes travelling on many other airlines, particularly the growing number of scheduled low-cost and regional operators plus charter flights and VIP missions.
Worldwide, rising passenger numbers will translate into more flights from expanding airport networks and a broader variety of aircraft types, as extended versions of current models enter service and next-generation electric or hybrid planes reshape regional aviation.
Cabin capacity on existing fleets is also increasing as airlines add more rows of seats to carry more passengers per flight.
Improved engines and aerodynamics are enabling narrowbody jets in particular to fly ever-longer distances, delivering new routes or additional services on existing sectors, replacing less frequent widebody aircraft.
There are also more low-cost flights on long-haul routes, using both widebodies and new, long-range narrowbodies, with many of these airlines adding premium cabins.
New orders
All of this growth is driving demand for more versatile and more efficient airport catering trucks.
Dubai-based Emirates Flight Catering, which operates around 300 of these vehicles, plans to introduce over 90 more for both growth and replacement by mid next year, including the region’s first all-electric high loader.
“We are excited to embark on the complete modernisation of our fleet of aircraft catering trucks,” said Shahreyar Nawabi, CEO of Emirates Flight Catering, when announcing orders for 53 units from Belfast-based Mallaghan earlier this year.
Already the world’s busiest international air hub, Dubai is building an even bigger replacement airport, with 400 boarding gates and capacity for 250 million passengers per year, it will require a vastly bigger fleet of catering and delivery vehicles.
In the US, global catering company LSG Skychefs is introducing 230 next-generation catering trucks, largely to replace older, less efficient fleet with upgraded vehicles.
The order comprises of four diverse models, says Kimberly Plaskett, marketing and communications manager for LSG Americas, 94 of them 24-foot (7.3m) catering trucks; another 45 will be 16-foot (5m) trucks, plus there will be nine regional jet service units and 30 support vans.
The equipment was produced by a mix of suppliers including Mallaghan, Ford, Waters Truck and Smith Transportation Equipment. Larger units include a redesigned rear loading bay for greater access and egress to enable faster flight turnarounds in these times of higher utilisation and demand.
There’s also big and growing demand for used and refurbished catering trucks for purchase, lease, or short-term rental says Aya Hakimi, marketing manager of Aviaco, a major global provider of pre-owned ground service vehicles and equipment.
While catering trucks comprise around 5% of the company’s inventory, it reports annual growth of 15-20% in this segment of the market.
“OEM production bottlenecks and price increases have made refurbished equipment the go-to option for many operators,” says Hakimi. “The main driver is operational flexibility. Operators can acquire ready-to-deploy, high-quality units without waiting months for new builds or dealing with OEM supply chain delays.
“Smaller operators look for cost-effective availability, while major ground handlers and airlines use refurbished trucks to expand quickly, support new routes, or supplement their fleets during seasonal peaks.”
Aviaco’s customers include big-brand ground handling companies Swissport, Servair, Bijoux Catering, Aviapartner and Çelebi.
The green evolution
The growth in and evolution of catering fleets also coincide with increased global requirements for lower-emission airport operations, requiring progressive replacement of fossil-fuelled vehicles with low-or-no emission equipment. This includes catering trucks, which are among the largest and highest emitting of airside vehicles.
Electric-powered fleets are being developed by most new equipment manufacturers, and trials and transitions are occurring in multiple markets to meet the decarbonisation targets of catering companies, airlines and airports.
While smaller ground service vehicles such as baggage tractors and luggage loaders were the first to be electrified, catering trucks are now a significant and growing priority as their use grows globally.
As well as zero-emission powertrains, catering trucks increasingly include electric refrigeration units which not only emit no CO2, but also include features such as variable-frequency condensing fans, which can rapidly change storage temperatures.
Mallaghan has co-developed and tested e-catering trucks with major operators including Dubai-based global logistics group dnata and giant US airline Delta.
Early this year, at Prague Airport, Mallaghan and dnata trialled an e-catering truck for 60 days, during which it drove a total of 730 kilometres over 147 hours to support 230 flights.
“We’re consistently investing in infrastructure and equipment to enhance environmental efficiency across our global operation,” says Robin Padgett, divisional senior vice president of dnata’s Catering and Retail division, which prepares and delivers to aircraft over 110 million meals per year at more than 60 airports.
Meanwhile, Germany’s DOLL Aircraft Systems has commenced production and initial deliveries of its new Mercedes eConic and Volvo FLE electric high loader catering trucks.
LSG Skychefs is trialling an electric prototype at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, with a view to much wider deployment.
And across the Atlantic at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, KLM Catering Services is nearing the end of a 12-month “all seasons” assessment of two electric trucks.
“The design of catering trucks is evolving to meet the increasing operational demands and sustainability goals of airlines,” says the carrier. “There is still plenty of room for improvement in this area, but the foundation has been laid.”
KLM is evaluating both Mallaghan and DOLL vehicles, examining their operational impact, user-friendliness, and technical performance, as part of the airline group’s objective of achieving emission-free ground handling by 2030.
It is reviewing feedback from drivers and airport operational teams, alongside data extracted from the trucks and charging infrastructure, ahead of an initial report by the end of this year.
DO & CO has also pledged that by 2030, “wherever possible,” it will switch its entire global fleet of airside vehicles including catering trucks to a mix of electric, biofuel and hydrogen-powered units.
The company is assessing multiple options but has yet to identify a specific and available solution that fully meets its needs. However, it is also looking to longer-term initiatives, potentially including autonomous catering vehicles once the technology is mature, to improve on-airport safety and efficiency while reducing labour costs and damage risks.
Commercial aviation parts and service solutions company, Airco, says the pace of market growth and decarbonisation imperatives are leading to an increasing number of customers extending the life of their existing equipment by retrofitting with next-generation features.
“There’s a big shift from traditional ‘used’ sales to fully refurbished, IATA-conforming vehicles,” says Hakimi. “Operators now expect equipment that performs like new, not just looks the part.
“We completely overhaul mechanical and structural systems. We’re also seeing growing demand for electric powertrains, safety upgrades and modernisation retrofits as part of the sustainability push.”
But it’s not just emission reduction which is driving the transformation of airport catering trucks. It is also accident reduction, largely following a global outflow of experienced airside employees during the pandemic and their replacement with fewer and less-experienced personnel.
That shift has resulted in a global surge in airport incidents and accidents, causing injuries and deaths in airside workforces, and costing billions of dollars each year in damage to ground service vehicles, aircraft and infrastructure.
Key and increasingly standard features of new fleets, including all 230 of LSG’s new catering trucks in America, are anti-collision systems and “intelligent cameras” to provide real-time and 360-degree monitoring of operations and operators for both safety and efficiency.
Just how specific these new technologies are is prominently specified by major Chinese manufacturer Jiangsu Tianyi Aviation, which claims 60% of the country’s massive and ever-growing market for ground service vehicles and equipment.
Along with the core food-ferrying functions of its latest catering trucks, the company promotes its integration of a “civil aviation equipment big data supervision platform”, which uses 182 sensors to provide comprehensive real-time updates on the technical performance of each vehicle – and the behaviours of operators.
Using “biological indicator monitoring devices” including video, infrared and body sensing, Jiangsu’s new catering trucks can “monitor the behaviours of drivers such as changing shifts or leaving their posts, fatigued driving, abnormal driving, making phone calls, smoking, and entertainment”.
As well, Jiangsu says, the lifting and lowering of the catering truck’s supply cabin, and extension and retraction of the vehicle’s support feet, are digitally linked to prevent “human mis-operation”.
So, in the highly competitive and rapidly expanding market for affordable, sustainable and efficient airside catering trucks, there’s plenty of food for thought.
