"I served in the Royal Engineers for just over seven years, so its personally a really proud moment to provide NATO with what is the best product in our line up"
Oliver North
Huddersfield-based fire fighting vehicle manufacturer Rosenbauer UK has supplied NATO with two fire appliances, which touched down in Afghanistan earlier this month.
With a mission to provide effective security and safety across the country, NATO signed the £1.1million contract just over two months ago in November 2017.
The two 6x6 Panther fire trucks have now been delivered and were transported to Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport by the world's largest operational cargo jet, Antonov Airlines’ AN-225.
The contract was secured by Rosenbauer UK’s managing director, who started his career in the military at the age of 17.
He said: “In 2017, many airports across the UK entrusted us to provide Panthers to meet their demanding requirements, but it’s fantastic to have delivered these state-of-the-art appliances to NATO.
“Supplying this military alliance with the best airport trucks available on the market is a particular source of fulfilment for me. I served in the Royal Engineers for just over seven years, so it’s personally a really proud moment to provide NATO with what is the best product in our line up — the Rosenbauer Panther — which will serve its time watching over Kabul’s airport.”
The £550,000 6x6 Panthers are the most innovative airport fire trucks available in the industry. The 39 tonne trucks are capable of hitting 80kph within 29 seconds — a speed unheard of with similar sized machines. They are each able to carry 11,000 litres of water and can deliver 9,000 litres of water and or foam per minute.
The Panthers were purchased to replace existing units, and all firefighting equipment in the appliances have been developed, manufactured, and optimally integrated into the vehicle body by Rosenbauer UK.
This deal was just one of eleven agreements secured in the airport industry for Rosenbauer UK in 2017, giving the organisation a 100% contract win rate in this sector. This has helped to propel the firm’s order book for 2018, which shows a 120% increase in turnover compared with the previous 12 months, up to £20 million.
In 2017, Rosenbauer’s innovative Panther fire truck appeared in WIRED Magazine and on Channel 5’s Gadget Show.
