Ground Support Equipment in Aviation Museums

[Noha307]

Various Tugs from Around the Web

Clarktor 120 at the Glenn L. Martin Maryland Aviation Museum
CTA40 at the Glenn L. Martin Maryland Aviation Museum

1953 "Big Ugly" at the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum (No Picture)

Various GSE at the National Museum of World War II Aviation

Minneapolis-Moline MO-TOW-M, Serial No. 20300095 at the Texas Air Museum
Link to Oversize Photo

David Brown at the Midland Air Museum
Link to Oversize Photo

Unknown Tug at the Australian National Aviation Museum
Link to Oversize Photo

1932 Aircraft Tug at the Port Townsend Aero Museum


Unknown tug at McChord Air Museum - Donated by Horizon Airlines in late-September 2005.


1938 Fordson Major at the Sywell Aviation Museum


Two Unknown Tugs at the Estrella Warbirds Museum


1953 Clark CK-26 Aircraft Tug at the Silverwings Flying Company


Unknown Tug with Unknown Owner


David Brown at Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre


David Brown at Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre


Unknown Tug at the Kissimmee Air Museum


United Tractor GC-340-4 A9, Ser. 15071 at the USS Hornet Museum


Unknown Tug at the USS Hornet Museum


EDIT: Add missing museum name to David Brown entry.

Last edited by Noha307 on Sun Aug 20, 2017 11:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[Noha307]

Photos from Flickr

Hebard Tractor at the Royal Air Force Museum London
David Brown at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford
David Brown at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford
David Brown at the Yorkshire Air Museum
David Brown Tug at Unknown Location
Unknown Tug at Nut Tree Airport
Unknown Tug at the General Patton Memorial Museum
M2 Cletrac at the Pima Air & Space Museum
Federal Aircraft Tug at the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum

[Sasquatch]

To get back on topic, the 1940 Air Terminal Museum has a tug that was donated by Southwest Airlines around November 2013. Check out that real comfortable seat!


That looks to be a former US Navy tug, a TA-75. I used to drive one of those, and if you changed the governor spring setting, you could pop a wheelie in 2-3 pumps on the gas pedal.

-Tom

Last edited by Sasquatch on Tue Dec 20, 2016 6:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[Spectre_I]

Hello. I can't tell you much about our tugs. I drive 'em, but I don't know makes / models / years, etc. Here are some pictures of our daily use tugs. We have a much larger one in another hangar. If you want info on any in particular, I can easily get it for you. Hope this helps.

This is excellent! Simply awesome! I would ask for the information on all of them...if it's not too much of a hassle that is.

EDIT: Don't forget you guys also have this Clarktor 6! (Which I just so happened to come across online.)

Happy to help. I'll get the info for you.

[phil65]

I didn't even know about the Military Museum of Southern New England...

Thanks,
Phil

[Taigh Ramey]

We have a few WWII vehicles and ground support equipment that we use at the museum and shop for general help in servicing the aircraft and for events like Bomber Camp.

Here is a shot of some of the vehicles in what we call the Motor Puddle
From left to right: Two saginaw M5 Bomb Service trailers, Saginaw Chemical Warfare trailer with the Ball Turret training stand, Federal C2 Wrecker Truck, Chevy E-5 Turret Training truck, Chevy M6 Bomb Service truck, Ford Staff Car, Ford GPW Jeep, Clarktor tug, Clarkat tug, Columbia bicycle



This is the Cletrac M2 towing the airfield control trailer...or our interpretation of one anyway. It is a WWII radio shelter that went in the back of a CCKW 2 1/2 ton truck on top of an M5 Bomb Trailer. This WWII combo trailer actually came out of government surplus 10 years ago and was used as a paint trailer on an Air Force base for 60 additional years after it was made. We painted it with the checkers to represent an airfield control trailer and put the B-17E Sperry turret dome on top as the observation dome just like it was done in the field around 8th AF bases





One of the WWII hoists used for turrets and general hoisting duties. Here it is holding the QEC shortly after it was removed from the Harpoon. The Arizona Ground Crew Living History Unit came up to help with the engine removal. Thanks guys!



The ground support equipment in action during Bomber Camp 2013. Since then we have a better backdrop instead of T hangars. The last few years we have used one of the only remaining WWII hangars on the field. I love this shot except for the darn T hangars



More of the ground support equipment in use at Bomber Camp. Here you can see the Federal C2 Airfield Wrecker truck and the Clarktor tug



This is a Saginaw M5 bomb trailer providing ground support. On the left is the Chevy M6 Bomb Service truck



The C2 Wrecker truck lifting up half of the harpoon since one of our jacks was only functioning as a jack stand. Rebuild time. The Wrecker lifted it with the engine at idle and didn't seem to know that there was any weight involved



Using the original lift fittings. There must be some sort of inter-service conflict with an Army truck lifting a Navy aircraft



The bomb dollies and other gear in the WWII hangar that we are trying to save



Not quite WWII but it's our Bus that is painted to look that way



Here is a Ford Mototug project in John Deer green camo waiting its turn to get all purdy'd up



One of the reasons we do Bomber Camp; bringing the ground support equipment back to life. I love using the WWII gear for its intended purpose.

[Jerry O'Neill]

This was quick, but how's this Taigh?

[Noha307]

Excellent post Taigh! I love learning about this stuff and it's great to see someone taking care of it.

Motor Puddle

I like it!

This was quick, but how's this Taigh?

I think something happened to the color values when you edited that picture. The reds now look pinkish.

[maxum96]

More of the ground support equipment in use at Bomber Camp. Here you can see the Federal C2 Airfield Wrecker truck and the Clarktor tug

Where?

[Taigh Ramey]

That's awesome Jerry!! You da man!!

[Jerry O'Neill]

Thanks Taigh!
I'll fix the color for you. I did it quick last night and forgot to change the color setting on Photoshop! I was watching TV at the time!

If you have a higher rez image of it that you can send me, I can do it much better and it would be more useful for you.
Jerry

[Jerry O'Neill]

Color values fixed! Note to self: don't play with Photoshop while watching the History Channel!

[m50a1ontos]

My '43 International I-9 Industrial. Former Navy Aircraft (or Airship gantry) tug at NAS Moffatt Field. The Navy property tag and stenciled serial number are still intact.

[Noha307]

Color values fixed! Note to self: don't play with Photoshop while watching the History Channel!

Looks great! It's like I went back in time.

My '43 International I-9 Industrial. Former Navy Aircraft (or Airship gantry) tug at NAS Moffatt Field. The Navy property tag and stenciled serial number are still intact.

Until I read your post and found the news article about the Fargo Air Museum I had no idea that the military used actual farm tractors as aircraft tugs during the war. It continues to amaze me that for all I thought I knew about WWII there is still stuff out there that I've never even heard of before.

Another takeaway I've gotten from your post is the realization that many aircraft tugs were never designed as aircraft tugs. I imagine with the huge expansion during WWII the military had to use whatever was available to move aircraft. Furthermore, as the modeling thread I linked to above notes, the first tugs used on-board aircraft carriers were nothing more than jeeps.

I should note that I believe TSWM #2 was ordered as a "shop mule" and not as an aircraft tug because it was bought by the Goodyear Atomic Plant in Piketon, Ohio which (AFAIK) did not have any aircraft handling facilities. Also, it really doesn't have all that much towing capacity (2600 lbs draw bar pull), so it would only be useful for moving small aircraft. Our museum received it from Lunken Airport, which is where it had been in use as an aircraft tug. So I guess what I'm saying is that the tradition of reusing similar, but non-purpose built for aviation, towing vehicles continues to the present day.

Anyway, your tug is awesome, thanks for posting the information about it. What are your plans for it?

[m50a1ontos]

My I-9 has steering brakes in addition to the regular foot brake, it also has the same rear end as a 2 ton truck. Or so I was told. It originally had dual rear wheels and a front receiver like mount for pushing and pulling aircraft tow bars and those big tripod like masts that the blimps etc moored to. It has wheel weights on all four corners as well. When I found it, it was yard art. The engine is loose but the carb and electrical system is shot. I'll get around to restoring it at some point, unless some museum is interested