Pulling/pushing aircraft by the prop
I'm not a great fan of moving aircraft around by pulling/pushing on the prop, but it's a common occurrence at clubs here in France - well, tow bar plus prop, mostly.
Given that the blades have to absorb huge stresses in flight, and I think I'm right in saying that propeller tip speeds will approach the speed of sound (?), how much truth is there in the remark that one should push/pull close to the hub, rather than further out, towards the propeller tip? The alleged reason being that pulling/pushing nearer the tip does the prop no good? Does it really make any difference? I just can't see how a pair of weedy female arms could possibly exert enough force to do any kind of "damage" to a prop by handling it (slightly) closer to the tip than the hub? But always willing to learn...
As I said, I'm not really a fan of touching the prop at all.