subject: 5 Quirky Stories For Ground Support Equipment (gse) Enthusiasts [print this page] Do you belong to that sub-set of aviation lovers with a particular interest in ground support equipment? The Internet is an excellent source of GSE folklore. Of particular interest: YouTube videos and international news stories that capture real life on the tarmac. Happy surfing!
1. The real reason your flight was delayed!
This YouTube video is sure to please ground support equipment enthusiasts of all stripes.
Shot from inside a plane, it shows three ground support equipment workers with sheepish expressions trying to dislodge a pushback tug from a pile of snow.
This inherently difficult operation appears to be further complicated by the proximity of the passengers (especially the one with a video camera). The ground support equipment crew look embarrassed to be addressing the problem within view of the plane.
As Virginia Woolf once said, One of those comedies which life sometimes does to perfection. One of lifes comedies ground-support-equipment style!
Tidbit: A pushback tug is a small ground support equipment vehicle that can move a parked aircraft. It is also sometimes called a pushback tractor.
2. Since when is duct tape ground support equipment?
When ground support equipment crew for Irish-based low-cost airline Ryanair used duct tape to fix a broken windscreen, it made international news.
Tidbit: The duct tape was not as successful as the ground support equipment crew had hoped; the ensuing flight had to be aborted only twenty minutes in.
3. I didnt say to release the brakes!
There are also videos on YouTube detailing what can go wrong on the tarmac. One such video, which shows a plane rolling into an unmanned pushback tug, includes a discussion of how miscommunication is often at fault in these kinds of accidents. Good communication skills are essential to the smooth operations of a ground support equipment crew.
4. Secrets of the biffy house
The lav truck is a ground support equipment vehicle that is used to service airplane lavatories. One You Tube video called Servicing the Lav Truck shows the inside of the biffy house, where lav trucks are emptied into a grinder pit.
For the most devoted ground support equipment enthusiasts who really want to know the ins-and-outs of life on the tarmac.
5. LEGO ground support equipment
LEGO hackers sometimes post inspiring videos of their LEGO hacks. LEGO Pushback Tug shows a motorized pushback tractor in fire engine red. Of interest to LEGO lovers and ground support equipment enthusiasts alike, not to mention those interested in the diversity of the human spirit.
Tidbit: This video illustrates how this small piece of ground support equipment is able to move much larger aircraft using friction.
