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Guys, I searched the internet and probably found this vehicle. The photo I found was from a Mercedes Sprinter / Mayer built in 2000. And the function is was a KLAF from 2000-2010. From 2010 - now it is in use as a GW-HörG (High Rise Rescue). So Rob you were right !
Added by Marcel Sloover on 29 July 2013.
Added by Marcel Sloover on 29 July 2013.
I imagine it was probably replaced by a Vario 818 KLAF, as many of these kinds of units have grown in size every time they have gone through a replacement cycle, since they were first placed into service in the 80s.
I find it very interesting that some UK fire brigades are just starting to experiment with light first response units along KLAF lines, but they have obviously not done any research on the German fire services' experience with these units, which goes back at least twenty years!
Some German cities report that their KLAFs handle as much as 80% of all calls, leaving most of their full-sized trucks and the vast majority of their members 100% available for real emergencies.
As AFAs and service calls continue to mushroom, I think it inevitable we will see KLAF-type units all over Britain, but I do wish the authorities would talk to their German counterparts to find out what works and what does not, instead of trying to reinvent the wheel.
Added by Rob Johnson on 29 July 2013.
I find it very interesting that some UK fire brigades are just starting to experiment with light first response units along KLAF lines, but they have obviously not done any research on the German fire services' experience with these units, which goes back at least twenty years!
Some German cities report that their KLAFs handle as much as 80% of all calls, leaving most of their full-sized trucks and the vast majority of their members 100% available for real emergencies.
As AFAs and service calls continue to mushroom, I think it inevitable we will see KLAF-type units all over Britain, but I do wish the authorities would talk to their German counterparts to find out what works and what does not, instead of trying to reinvent the wheel.
Added by Rob Johnson on 29 July 2013.
Rob, it was replaced by a 2010 Mercedes Benz Sprinter 316 CDi.
Added by Marcel Sloover on 30 July 2013.
Added by Marcel Sloover on 30 July 2013.
Yes, I checked out their site too and I was a bit surprised to see that, because the Vario is becoming much more popular as a KLAF - because it can carry a 1000 liter CAFS installation.
Interesting that Augsburg, like many other German cities with multiple stations, operates only one KLAF. They must presumably think that minor alarms can be handled from a single station. This implies not only a small vehicle with limited equipment and a two-person crew, but longer response times too!
As there seems to be no standard for the KLAF, each city specifies its units its own way. Some do not even carry any firefighting equipment except hand extinguishers, others have quite large CAFS systems.
Added by Rob Johnson on 30 July 2013.
Interesting that Augsburg, like many other German cities with multiple stations, operates only one KLAF. They must presumably think that minor alarms can be handled from a single station. This implies not only a small vehicle with limited equipment and a two-person crew, but longer response times too!
As there seems to be no standard for the KLAF, each city specifies its units its own way. Some do not even carry any firefighting equipment except hand extinguishers, others have quite large CAFS systems.
Added by Rob Johnson on 30 July 2013.
Mercedes-Benz
It could be a BA tender, but it might also be a "Kleinalarmfahrzeug" used for minor alarms. Many German cities operate these to respond to AFAs, technical service calls, nuisance fires and the like.
The BA tenders usually have "Atemschutz" (literally "breathing protection") lettering, but it is not mandatory. The reason I think this may be a KLAF is that the Sprinter was very popular in this role at that time, and most BA tenders in Germany were larger vehicles like the Vario or Atego. But it is all still guesswork, unless their website has descriptions and illustrations of what are now thirteen year old trucks.
Added by Rob Johnson on 29 July 2013.