Decarbonizing Aviation Ground Operations 2025

This section presents a detailed TCO comparison for the four alternative bus fleet scenarios at a European international hub airport (see Figure 4). The analysis covers initial investments, annual operating expenditures, TCO per km, and scenario-specific operational insights. The diesel-based fleet serves as the baseline for comparison. The initial investment is €11.97 million, exclusively for bus procurement, as no additional infrastructure is required. Annual operating expenditure is €5.3 million, with a 15% salvage value factored in at end-of-life. TCO is influenced by high fuel and maintenance costs. The absence of government subsidies and exposure to volatile diesel prices can erode long-term competitiveness. Notably, driver salaries represent the single largest cost component, accounting for nearly two-thirds of TCO per km.3.2 Scenario-based TCO results and insights TCO results divided by scenario, technology, capex and opex FIGURE 4 Note: Key operational and financial assumptions common to all scenarios are also included 1 Weighted average cost of capital * After 50% subsidy Diesel Retrofit Electric Hydrogen Off-site production Total capex €11.97 million €5.11 million* €9.30 million* €18.47 million* Capex/km 0.49 €/km 0.20 €/km 0.37 €/km 0.35 €/km Annual opex €5.30 million €4.95 million €4.91 million €5.45 million Opex/km 3.22 €/km 3.00 €/km 2.98 €/km 3.64 €/km TCO/km 3.71 €/km 3.20 €/km 3.35 €/km 3.99 €/kmOperational assumptions Financial assumptions Airport type Fleet size (#) Daily km Operating hours Utilization rate (%) Drivers (#) Driver salary (€) WACC1Lifetime Year of investment International EU medium-sized50 90 per bus 18 per day 25% 3 per bus €36.5k yearly 4.56% 15 years 2030 Decarbonizing Aviation Ground Operations: Alternative Bus Technologies 16