Special name or?

[6./ZG26_Loke]

Do the vehicle which is used for pulling an aircraft to, like the runway and such have a special name, or are they just referred to as tractors?

 

Here a Kettenkrad pulling an Ar 234..

[ER*Melhilion]

Kleines Kettenkraftrad Typ HK 101

 

Military designation in the Wehrmacht:

Sonderkraftfahrzeug 2 (Sd.Kfz. 2)

[6./ZG26_Loke]

Yeah, know that!

[AndyJWest]

I think that in a US/UK context, they were usually known as tugs, rather than tractors.

[6./ZG26_Loke]

Thanks AJW!

Wonder if that would be Schlepper or Trecker in German?

[Juri_JS]

The German term would be Flugzeugschlepper.

[Finkeren]

In modern airports they are called pushback tugs (tractors) because their main function is to push the aircraft backwards away from the gate, which is the only part of taxiing the aircraft can’t do on its own.

 

Back in WW2 I guess they would just have been called “tugs”.

 

BTW: how often were these used on taildraggers? A taildragger you’d almost have to tow backwards to be able to steer it at all.

[Retnek]

Thanks AJW!

Wonder if that would be Schlepper or Trecker in German?

Schlepper and Traktor ( = "Trecker", that's a bit more slang) are fine, too. Both are in use in context of farming. From my stomach reading a lot of German books for the airfields I'd choose the more formal "Zugmaschine" or the leasure "Schlepper". Edited December 5, 2017 by 216th_Retnek

[6./ZG26_Loke]

Thanks chaps .

 

And Finkeren. They were used rather often I believe on taildraggers too.