Airbus has gained approval for avionics bay changes on A320-family aircraft to allow use of the Taxibot pilot-controlled hybrid-electric tug and is now considering expanding the operability to its widebody jets too.
In development for the past three years, the retrofit kit, enabling taxiing without running the engines to lower fuel burn, is now available to Airbus single-aisle customers, the airframer states.
To use the semi-driverless tug, which is clamped to the nose landing gear, “small modifications” are required to the avionics bay.
Once in place, the nose wheel is raised onto a pivotable platform, enabling the pilot to use the aircraft tiller and brake to steer.
Although a driver is required to connect the Taxibot and perform the pushback, the pilot is then in control until the tug is removed, and the engines spooled up shortly before take-off.
Airbus says the successful trials with the Taxibot mean it is “now considering its adoption for the rest of its fleet”, an ambition aided by the tug manufacturer’s development of a widebody version.
Evaluations of the Taxibot have been taking place as part of a wider European project called HERON aimed at delivering environmental benefits through improved aircraft operations.
Led by Airbus, HERON – Highly Efficient Green Operations – is part funded by the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) programme and aims to show how aviation’s environmental footprint can be reduced through efficient ground operations and optimised air traffic management. The €40 million ($47 million) programme runs until the end of 2025.
Tests have taken place at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Brussels airports, with carrier EasyJet also planning to conduct operational trials with the Taxibot at Amsterdam Schiphol later this year.
Schiphol is seen as an ideal candidate for hybrid tug operations, given the long distance between some of its six runways and the terminals.
The airport’s studies suggest large-scale adoption of the Taxibot and engine-free taxiing could lead to fuel savings of around 50%, rising to as much as 85% on legs to more distant runways.
Additional studies are taking place at New York JFK and New Delhi airports.
These efforts include pilot training, adjustments to airport infrastructure to allow efficient connection and removal of the tugs and to integrate their use into airport ground operations.
Originally developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) – which still holds the trademark – it partnered in 2009 with TLD, a French manufacturer of airport ground support equipment, for production of the Taxibot.
In the longer term, Airbus and its HERON partners will push for Taxibot use to become “standard procedure for aircraft ground movements where advisable”, it says.
“Airports are actively pursuing solutions to reduce CO2 emissions from ground operations, which is in line with the broader initiatives of HERON,” says Benjamin Tessier, HERON coordinator and vehicle systems architect at Airbus.
The concept of electric taxiing emerged early last decade with multiple companies developing retrofit solutions before vanishing again on fuel price and technology readiness concerns. However, the topic has recently come into focus again with several firms – among them Safran Landing Systems and Green Taxi Solutions – working on technologies for line- or retrofit.
HERON is researching other operational enhancements such as new air traffic control tools for future trajectory-based operations; single engine taxiing; and improved approach and runway operations to mitigate CO2 and noise emissions.
Partners in the 24-strong Airbus-led HERON consortium are drawn from 10 countries and include carriers Air France, EasyJet, Lufthansa, and Transavia, Italian aerospace firm Leonardo, airport operators Aeroports de Paris and Amsterdam Schiphol, alonsgside Eurocontrol.
