A single tow-bar for all wide-body aircraft
It’s still early in the morning and Dubai International Airport is already kicking into high gear. And not a moment too soon, as rush hour for large aircraft with international connections is fast approaching. Let’s look at one particular example: A Boeing B787, which landed at 8:30 AM and is scheduled to depart on a transatlantic flight a mere two hours later. Meanwhile, the passengers are blissfully unaware of just how much work is happening simultaneously so that their flight will be able to depart on time. But the ramp agent has everything under control. The man with the yellow safety vest is responsible for making sure that all the work for the aircraft goes smoothly so that it will be perfectly prepared for its next trip.
That’s not all, however. The ramp agent is also responsible for deciding when it’s time to prepare the pushback. The tug driver has already rolled the tow-bar, on its two wheels, in front of the vehicle. Usually a more complex procedure than it may appear at first, since each aircraft model has its own tow-bar, and there is a dizzying array of them at the various storage areas. Fortunately for the tug driver, he has a computer monitor that told him that a B787 is next, making it much easier to get the right tow-bar.
Having to find the right tow-bar is now a thing of the past
The new TOWUNIV8 tow-bar makes towing much simpler. It’s no secret that having to have multiple, extensive storage areas with an extremely wide variety of tow-bars is both costly and time-consuming, and this new model is designed to fix that by covering all wide-body aircraft with a completely new approach that works with a range of models going from the A330-200 all the way to the B787-10. And while previous tow-bar models that covered multiple aircraft needed to have their shear pins changed every time, the new model simply needs the position of the locking mechanism at the tow head to be changed. And on top of that, making this change does not require any additional tools.
So how does this change towing?
In short, tug drivers are able to adjust the tow-bar for the application at hand without the need for any tools. All pins are always in place, meaning that having to store or swap them is no longer necessary, and the shear pin change is as simple as it is for conventional tow-bars. Above all, this means improved safety – not only for the aircraft on the tarmac, but also for tug drivers.
Figure: Simply change the application of the tow-bar between B787 and A340 by changing the locking mechanism
The tug at Dubai International Airport has a new TOWUNIV8. At 10:15 AM, it pushes the B787 from its parking position and onto the taxiway and then gets going for its next task: An A340-300 in 15 minutes. Easy peasy. After all, the driver no longer needs to go to the storage area and get a different tow-bar. Instead, he simply drives to the Airbus plane’s parking position and connects the tow-bar.
Interested in our new tow-bar?