Europe’s airfreight supply chain faces a toughest test: how to decarbonise the trucks that link major airport hubs to regional cargo terminals. These road feeder services (RFS) form the hidden backbone of the air cargo sector, moving shipments over short and medium distances where aircraft cannot. Yet the diesel engines that power them now sit in the crosshairs of regulators, customers, and investors alike.
Average emissions for RFS operations stand at between 80 and 120 grams of CO₂ per tonne-kilometre. With the EU’s targets and the expansion of its Emissions Trading System to road transport (ETS2) on the horizon, operators are, therefore, under growing pressure to shift away from traditional fuels, such as diesel.
“The challenge is not whether to decarbonise, but how fast we can make it happen without breaking the economic model,” Benny Smets, CEO of Ninatrans, stated. The practical pathway to zero-emission trucking remains uneven across Europe. Electric heavy goods vehicles are available, but charging and refuelling facilities are sparse, particularly for cross-border routes that make up much of the RFS network. Hydrogen trucks, with longer driving range, are in development, but it will take some years to go before mass production, a lot of challenges still to be addressed.
Hauliers report long lead times for vehicle orders and limited capacity on the power grid to support fleet-scale electrification. Even major operators with dedicated airport contracts are struggling to expand pilot schemes beyond a handful of units. “We have a recharging station big enough for two trucks,” Smets explained. “There is no way to electrify everything yet.”
The bottleneck reflects a broader imbalance between ambition and delivery. While national governments have pledged to expand high-capacity charging corridors, only a fraction of the required infrastructure is operational. Hydrogen supply chains, meanwhile, remain in their infancy, with refuelling costs still prohibitive outside a few industrial clusters.
Economics tipping toward electrification
Despite these obstacles, the financial logic of the transition is beginning to shift. Diesel’s long-standing tax advantages for hauliers are being phased out in several member states, while carbon pricing and stricter emissions standards are expected to raise operating costs further over the next decade.
Fossil fuel taxes could add several thousand euros per truck per year by the late 2020s. At the same time, battery and component prices for electric trucks are falling as production scales up. The balance between the two, some predict, could reach an “economic tipping point” within three years, when running a zero-emission vehicle becomes cheaper over its lifetime than a diesel equivalent.
Still, fleet renewal will take time. High capital costs, long payback periods, and persistent uncertainty over future resale values continue to deter smaller operators. For now, most are betting on a mix of fuels — combining battery-electric and bio-LNG trucks for regional routes, while retaining diesel and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) for long-haul sectors until infrastructure improves.
Competitive pressure and global supply chains
Europe’s slow progress is also exposing its manufacturers to competitive risk. Chinese truck makers have begun exporting low-cost electric models, reportedly priced at around one-third of their European equivalents. Even with import duties, those units could undercut local products.
“China might play an important role in our industry,” Smets expressed. The gap in manufacturing cost — roughly €100,000 versus €300,000 per unit — has raised concerns in Brussels about industrial competitiveness and the need for targeted incentives to support local production.
Without coordinated policy, the EU could end up dependent on imported vehicles just as it seeks to secure its supply chain. The debate mirrors that of the broader energy transition, where cost, sovereignty, and sustainability goals often pull in different directions.
Collaboration, transparency, and the long road ahead
Decarbonising airfreight trucking will require collaboration across the value chain. Airlines, forwarders, airports, and hauliers will need to align procurement, data reporting, and infrastructure investment to make meaningful progress.
Operators are also under pressure from customers to quantify and disclose transport emissions in line with ESG reporting frameworks. Those that can demonstrate measurable reductions stand to win new contracts as large shippers embed carbon metrics in logistics tenders.
“The airfreight community must treat sustainability as part of its business model, not as an add-on,” Smets concluded. That shift, speakers agreed, will redefine how RFS capacity is planned, priced, and powered — marking the beginning of a long but irreversible transformation in Europe’s air cargo logistics.
