One way of attracting a crowd at shows like AOPA Summit is to have a clever gadget and Anthony Chan definitely has one in his clever wirelessly controlled aircraft tug. Chan was putting the tug through its paces on the exhibit floor in Fort Worth this week and drawing plenty of interest. Unlike most tugs, which use rubber-tired wheels for traction, the AC Air Technology tug has a miniature tank tread system driven by a pair of powerful electric motors powered by a lithium-ion battery capable of multiple tows.
The entire rig is remote controlled by a control box similar to that used for a RC aircraft. The tug on display here and featured in todays video coverage of Summit is capable of towing up to 5000 pounds, but another more powerful model can handle up to 15,000 pounds. The smaller version is intended to be portable enough to toss into a baggage compartment for use at the destination. Both models have a self-locking engagement with the aircraft nosewheel thats released remotely from the control box.
