Tractors, gritters and £100k sweepers - inside Manchester Airport's snow clearing-fleet

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Each day thousands of passengers fly into or out of Manchester Airport and even during perfect weather conditions it's a finely balanced operation which gets travellers to their final destination.

Yet when temperatures plummet as they have done this week, the airport faces additional challenges. Snow and ice are particularly dangerous for aircraft - you don’t want to be landing on a slippery runway.

Then there’s the 20 miles of runways, taxiways and stands that have to be cleared of ice and snow, which is no easy feat. What makes it even more challenging is that the airport can’t rely on using grit, which is how roads, paths and car parks are treated, as it’s corrosive and can damage aircraft.

Instead the runways are treated with de-icing fluid that prevents them from freezing. Another factor which helps is that the runway surface is slightly grooved, offering better traction for aircraft when it is wet or icy.