Nose gear lifting and parking brake.

[tomcat69]

All towbar-less tugs I've worked with need to pull/roll the aircraft onto a lifting plate which then lifts off the ground lifting the aircraft with it. So how is the nose supposed to be rolled onto this lifting plate if the aircraft cannot be rolled with the parking brake set??? Perhaps you havn't noticed the roll because it is subtle but it's there, unless there are new towbarless tugs out there that somehow levitate the nose tires off the ground without the need to roll the aircraft that I haven't seen before, which is quite possible.

[dusk2dawn]

Perhaps we havn't noticed the roll because the tugs are not braked during lift-up and thus the tugs can move freely under the nosegear (as long as the a/c is braked).

[tomcat69]

hmmmmmm, imagine trying to squeeze a metal plate under your car's tire without moving the car, a damn near impossibility. And one other thing I forgot to mention, the "cradling" procedure as it's called calls for leaving the aft chocks in place during the process so the aircraft won't roll back in case someting goes wrong.

[Flap Sup]

tomcat et al,

the towbarless (tbl) wraps itself around the wheels, it can be done when the ac is parked and it dosn't lift the ac before push.

Paxboy,

yes it saves money. Many stations are allowed to do a one man tbl operation. Furthermore, there is one less link to turn so it is easier for the driver than with a towbar, resulting in less aircraft damages - the most usual being nosewheel limit not kept.

I really wish I knew a lot less about ground handling....

/fs