The FINANCIAL — Taxiing to the popular runway intersection in a Setra bus. Visitors to Zurich's airport can now enjoy the comfort of a luxury Setra ComfortClass 400 touring coach when they participate in a sightseeing tour of the airport premises.
During the tour, the new S 415 GT-HD "Final Edition" which belongs to Flughafen Zürich AG takes guests to the maintenance hangars, the airport fire service and across the airfield to the runway intersection where they can experience planes at close range taking off to destinations all over the world. As Daimler AG said, the S 415 GT-HD with its high-quality paintwork showing a panorama of the airport is also available for other assignments. If flights are cancelled the operator takes stranded passengers on behalf of the airlines to the planned destination airports which include Stuttgart, Munich or Nuremberg.
As required, the 49-seat bus can be converted with the help of quick mounts on airline rails to accommodate a total of 16 wheelchairs. These can be lifted in to the two-axle vehicle via a fully-automatic lift for the disabled with a divided lift flap and door located behind the right-hand front wheel.
The S 415 GT-HD, equipped with a panorama camera, flatscreen displays and LED reading lamps, is the first touring coach in Switzerland to be fitted with three-point seat belts. Modern assistance systems such as the Lane Assistant and adaptive cruise control with Active Brake Assist (ABA) provide for the highest degree of safety for passengers. An additional infrared reversing camera assists the driver when manoeuvring in front of narrow hotel entrances. At the handover of the bus, Andreas Bachmann who is responsible for the transportation of passengers on the airport premises emphasised why Flughafen Zürich AG again chose a coach from Daimler's Ulm-based brand after having bought an S 417 GT-HD in 2007: "For us, the consistent price-performance ratio is a decisive purchasing argument when deciding to invest long-term in a new Setra bus. In the coming years, this vehicle will guarantee us a high degree of availability and great value retention."
Zurich airport is located 13 kilometres north of the finance metropolis' centre and is operated by the privatised Flughafen Zürich AG, which employs over 1700 employees on behalf of the state. In 2012 around 25 million passengers and over 270 000 take-offs and landings were recorded at Switzerland's largest airport. Zurich's airport serves as a hub for the German airlines Lufthansa and Air Berlin as well as being the base airport for Swiss, the federal national airline. The airport is also home to the headquarters of the Swiss air rescue service.
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