Plane spotting
12 February 2019
International heavy lift and transportation specialist Mammoet has completed a high-profile transport job in the Netherlands which involved moving a Boeing 747 for Dutch hotel chain Corendon Hotels & Resorts.
The aeroplane was transported overland from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to the garden of the Corendon Village Hotel, a distance of almost 12.5 km. The route crossed fields, 17 ditches, a local road, and the eight-lane A9 motorway – which was closed to traffic overnight to enable this to happen and guardrails and lampposts removed. The journey was completed over the course of three nights and executed in some extremely windy conditions.
The plane weighed 160 tonnes; it measured 64 metres wide and 71 metres long. Initially it was transported 8 km across Schiphol airport. Then it was transported 4.5 km across the fields to the hotel.
To do this Mammoet used 48 axle lines of Scheuerle self propelled modular transporter (SPMT) run in two rows, totalling 192 wheels. The trailer weighed more than 200 tonnes and was powered by two Scheuerle Power Pack Units, each rated at 390 kW. The trailer travelled at a top speed of 5 km/h and was operated via remote control by Mammoet personnel who walked alongside it.
To ensure the loaded trailer did not sink into the marshy land while travelling across the fields Mammoet constructed a road comprising approximately 2,100 metal road plates weighing 1,500 kg each. It also used 1,250 wooden bulkheads and built bridges over 17 ditches along the route. During the course of the transportation the trailer made a total of 18 turns – the first seven of these being at Schiphol airport.
When the Boeing 747 arrived near the Corendon Village Hotel it had to cross a main road, which required Mammoet to reroute local traffic. Careful manoeuvring of the trailer was then needed, as the Boeing 747 was successfully reversed into the hotel garden via an entrance with restricted space.
Mammoet project manager, Maarten Hegeman, commented, ”There were many different parties that we had to work closely with – Rijkswaterstaat (the public body responsible for water management), multiple municipalities, Schiphol airport, residents, landowners and so on. Also, a great deal of preparatory work was required, particularly for traversing the ditches and roads. Furthermore, the aircraft could only be driven at night to minimize inconvenience to flights and traffic.”
The Boeing 747 was previously owned by Dutch airline KLM and was called the City of Bangkok. It was retired from flying after 30 years of service and will now be used by Corendon Hotels & Resorts to house a 5D-experience about the history of aviation and the 747, which is scheduled to open later in 2019.
The transportation of the Boing 747 attracted the attention of the mainstream media, generating much news coverage for Mammoet and Corendon, both in the Netherlands and internationally.
