Amid strong demand for electrified units from airports and ground handlers, GSE manufacturers are accelerating investment in clean-energy solutions, writes Madison James
TLD Group’s pushback tractor portfolio features two lines of tractors: conventional and towbarless. Its conventional tractors range from the TMX-50, intended for business and private aircraft, helicopters and regional aircraft up to single-aisle aircraft including B737 NG3/MAX and A321, to the TMX-650 designed to perform pushback and towing operations on medium and widebody aircrafts.
Towbarless options, meanwhile, include the TPX-50-E for most commuters, and single aisle aircrafts up to 60 tons, all the way up to the TPX-500-MTS, chiefly designed for widebodies up to the A380.
TLD offers a large range of models, with most available as electric versions, powered by lithium-ion batteries. This wide selection allows it to cover “pretty much every situation and every aircraft”, according to Remy Richard, COO of TLD’s largest aircraft pushback factory, located near Tours in France.
Simplicity and reliability
As a world leader in GSE with customers operating at most airports around the world, TLD’s major clients include the vast majority of the legacy air carriers and low-cost operators, as well as freight carriers, airport operators and ground handlers like Menzies, Swissport and dnata. These large customers prioritise commonalities across TLD’s products, particularly when it comes to batteries and parts, as it makes them easier to maintain.
“That’s what we are able to offer, not only on tractors, but on the complete GSE range,” says Richard. “TLD is the only company that does that.”
He believes that the simplicity and reliability of TLD’s tractors are precisely what gives them an edge over competitors. “The design of the TLD unit is extremely simple […] TLD has been around for 70-plus years, when we go back in history,” he says.
“We are not producing a Rolls Royce – it’s more like a Volkswagen. It’s simple, reliable, easy to maintain. No fuss, no special leather. It does the job.”
Certain models also feature LINK Telematics or on-board GPU. “You can track and monitor every single operation and move of the tractor,” he adds, highlighting that this genuinely improves understanding of operations and monitoring of safety parameters.
Electrification: a long-term trend
Offering significantly reduced emissions and noise pollution, electrification continues to be a prominent trend in the GSE market; Richard predicts that this will hold steady in the long term.
“Airport infrastructure itself is being electrified. Today, I don’t see any airports reversing that trend. More than 60% of our sales are electric. The rest is hybrid, and a very minute part of it is diesel,” he says.
“Like every manufacturer, we were producing lots of diesel engines years ago. Now we still do a little bit, but most of our drivelines are electric drivelines [and] most of the tractors that we produce today are either hybrid or full electric.
“The largest share is full electric, using different sources; electric could be with a battery, with hydrogen, with a fuel cell,” he adds.
Indeed, Richard once predicted that hybridisation and electrification would accelerate the phasing out of internal combustion engines and hydraulic drivelines by the end of 2025. How true has this assessment turned out to be?
“It’s going as planned – and not only for us,” he confirms. “Our competitors are somewhat along the same lines, just because the market wants it.”
As a consequence of electrification, charging times have become a point of competition among pushback manufacturers. Richard, however, believes that this is the wrong debate; airport infrastructure must be able to efficiently support electric units.
“I can tell you that my tractors charge in half an hour, but I can also tell you that the same tractor charges in four hours if the power outlet is different,” he points out.
Rising innovation in automation
When it comes to other innovations that are shaping the GSE market, he highlights that turnaround optimisation, fleet management systems and remote-control equipment are continuing to gain traction in the industry. But: “Are customers fully ready to accept remote-controlled units? That’s a different story,” he notes.
TLD is also continuing research into zero-emission tractors through a project at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, where the manufacturer’s hydrogen-powered TPX-200-MTX-E H₂ unit (developed as part of the EU-funded TULIPS programme) performs several pushbacks daily on widebody aircraft such as the KLM Boeing 737.
As well as clean energy, Richard points out that automation is another growing trend within aviation, which TLD has already focused on for years; its TaxiBot and TractEasy robots have been around for over a decade, and many of its tractors have fully automated loading and unloading cycles.
The company continues to invest in research and development across several areas of innovation, including automation. “I think that the market is ready for [automation and fleet management systems],” he says. “The market has wanted it for years, and I think now, slowly but surely, people are willing it, and they’re really asking for it actively.”
Textron GSE’s pushback modernisation
Textron GSE offers four primary pushback tractor models under its TUG brand: the GT 35 (diesel) and ALPHA 1 (electric) for narrowbody aircraft, and the ALPHA 3 and 4 for widebodies.
Moreover, it owns the towbarless tractor brand, Douglas; though its Douglas models are not currently in production, the company is continuing to provide service and aftermarket support, while exploring the future of towbarless pushbacks.
The Georgia, US-based company also has a wide range of baggage and cargo tractors; its heavy-duty cargo tractors, like the MT tractor, support light pushback operations, for example on regional jets or smaller narrowbody aircraft.
According to Morgan Gresens, vice president and general manager at Textron GSE, the company is striving to update and modernise its existing fleet of pushbacks, particularly to enhance ramp operational safety. At the International GSE Expo 2025, it exhibited a new AI-enabled backup camera, which it is focusing on bringing to market in partnership with two of its major customers.
The camera can detect people and vehicles within a certain range, automatically slowing the vehicle down or stopping it altogether if there is a risk of collision. Moreover, Textron GSE has developed rotating cabs for its widebody pushbacks, providing operators with a full view of their surroundings while driving forwards and in reverse.
Limitations in charging infrastructure
Electrification has been a central focus for Textron GSE in recent years, a strategy that is set to continue in 2026. The ALPHA 1 narrowbody pushback is a popular product for operators and ground handlers looking to electrify their fleets. However, Gresens points out that limitations in charging infrastructure, particularly at the gate, have presented challenges for electrification. “Certainly, some locations are more advanced than others, but that does still create a challenge for purchasers of GSE,” she says. “We don’t yet sell an electric option for our widebody pushbacks – it requires higher voltage technology, which has a slower adoption curve.”
“A lot of our customers are moving equipment around within their fleet […] what we’re seeing is that they are somewhat limited on where that electric GSE can go,” she adds.
Across the company’s entire product portfolio, demand is equally split between its internal combustion and electric models at present. On the pushback side, its diesel units currently lead in popularity, despite growing interest in electric alternatives. “The industry is going electric. I think that the speed of that will be dictated by the available infrastructure,” says Gresens. “We are absolutely investing in electrifying the rest of our fleet of equipment.”
Apart from sustainability and safety, cost is a major priority for Textron GSE’s customers; airlines, ground handlers and equipment leasers face significant budget constraints from the immense expense pressure that exists in the commercial aviation and cargo industries. Those purchasing a more costly electric unit must be able to justify the operational savings over its lifespan; telematics solutions are increasingly being used to help calculate this.
“Telematics is something that all customers are exploring, and that is really to help them understand fleet utilisation in specific locations and track maintenance intervals and costs,” says Gresens.
She highlights that the company’s focus on reliability and customer support is what sets it apart – strengths that are becoming increasingly important as electrification and technology continue to evolve. Notably, emerging innovations must not only be able to integrate with new units, but also retrofit onto the existing fleet. For example, if only one GT 35 pushback has anti-collision technology in a fleet of ten, this can create operational issues.
“We try to be very thoughtful when we do introduce technology, especially safety features – it can’t only be on the new equipment,” says Gresens. “To me, that’s what sets us apart. We’re really going to work with our customers to understand where this equipment is going to be used, and how it’s going to go into operation and support their needs, from a training and commissioning perspective.”
Though its strongest market is North America, the company sees significant growth potential in Europe. Its de-icer business, Safeaero, is headquartered in Sweden, and it also sees opportunities for European expansion from a pushback perspective. “We’re always exploring what’s next for all our products,” says Gresens. “We do see an opportunity for us in the towbarless space, and it’s something we’re paying very close attention to.”
Mototok’s remote-controlled tugs
At a time in which innovation in towbarless and electric pushback technology began to unfold, Mototok emerged as a pioneer of the remote-controlled tug. It all started when co-founders Thilo Weirs-Keiser and Kersten Eckert set out to develop a pushback solution that would give operators full visibility of the aircraft. Eckert owned a Cirrus SR20 himself, but faced difficulties when moving it in and out of the hangar, with another user even damaging his jet during a manoeuvre. With only diesel-powered machinery widely available at the time, the concept for an electric, remote-controlled, compact machine to move small aircraft was born.
Mototok introduced the units to the market in the early 2000s and has since expanded their towing capacity, initially focusing on handling business jets with weights of up to 70 tons. The French Navy started using Mototok machines on the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, and in 2016, British Airways adopted several units to carry out pushback operations on narrowbodies. From there, the machines were exported to Spain and East Asia. “It’s a very unique concept that is winning more efficiency and punctuality for airlines,” says Weirs-Keiser.
Today, the company has developed machines capable of manoeuvering aircraft up to 200 tons, with customers spanning individual jet owners to commercial airlines to military operators. One of the company’s best-selling narrowbody pushbacks is the 8600 NG, a fully-electric, towbarless tug which is suitable for a number of different aircraft types: Airbus A320, Boeing 737, Embraers and MHI / Bombardier CRJ.
Ensuring safety
A key advantage of the Mototok tug is that it requires only one operator, providing a full overview of the aircraft. The company has received feedback indicating that this approach is safer than relying on two wing walkers, which can lead to miscommunication. Moreover, the remote control is easy to use, requiring only one to two hours of training for an operator with pushback experience.
The machine ensures safety by moving slowly towards and away from the nose gear, before stopping automatically to carry out tasks such as opening the nose wheel door, fixing the nose wheel, and lifting the platform via remote control. In addition, automatic countersteering renders it impossible to oversteer and cause damage. “Safety is the most important thing at Mototok,” says Weirs-Keiser. “We have learned a lot about what kind of mistakes an operator can make over the past years, and to avoid this, there are a lot of sensors in the machine.”
The Mototok tug is stationed permanently at the stand with an operator, increasing punctuality of departures by over 70%. According to Weirs-Keiser, this approach is only possible with the Mototok, which is designed to remain near the gate and charge there, rather than driving around the airport and losing energy. It is capable of performing up to 50 pushbacks per day across one to five gates, a significant volume which Weirs-Keiser says is made possible through the machine’s highly efficient software and motors.
“Enormous” global trend of electrification
In an industry where charging infrastructure has struggled to keep pace with the growing demand for electric units, the company has addressed this by equipping its machines with onboard chargers. Each unit also now comes with a towbar, so that it can be transported to locations further away when necessary. The charging time of a Mototok is approximately six hours, and they are equipped with lead-acid batteries, with the possibility of installing lithium batteries, an option which is more popular in the US.
Mototok’s strongest markets are in Europe and Asia, but it expects to see more growth in the US in the coming years. The company also plans to develop a larger machine capable of handling both widebody and narrowbody operations. Moreover, its latest generation of machines, produced over the past two years, offers more space for service and maintenance.
Alongside towbarless solutions, Weirs-Keiser describes the global trend of electrification within GSE as “enormous”. “In the long term, [electric units] are much more cost-effective because you have lower maintenance costs and only electric energy,” he says.
“This trend will not stop, and will continue over the coming years.”
