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November 3, 1999 9:36 AM, EST

ORLANDO, Fla. — Although airports exist to serve passengers and cargo that travels through the sky, trucks on the ground keep them functioning.

Without its fleet of 500 vehicles, ranging from Class 8 tractors and fire trucks to construction equipment, Orlando International Airport could not handle the more than 27 million passengers and 256,737 tons of cargo that moved across its tarmac last year.

“We certainly cannot operate without trucks,” said Michael Mannix Jr., assistant executive director of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, which oversees the airport.

“First of all, by federal law, we can’t operate without fire trucks,” he said. “Then we need a myriad of other vehicles to maintain and repair the runways, mow acres of grass, clear and maintain water control channels and a host of other jobs.”

For the full story, see the Nov. 1 print edition of Transport Topics. .