Identify this massive Aircraft Tug, Please?

[mcginlej]

Fellows, I need some help to identify this massive Aircraft Tug, which is at the Valiant Air Command museum in Titusville, FL. I'm a volunteer mechanic there but have no military or heavy-equipment background... The tug has zero information on it- no name, model, serial #, and no paper records either. Whoever got it to us is apparently gone. I have determined this much: It is 96 in (8 ft.) wide and 13ft, 5 in long, not including front-rear pintle hitches. It has a Detroit Diesel and auto trans of unknown make, front-only steering, 2 and 4-wheel drive modes with Rockwell axles bolted directly to the frame, planetary-gear hubs with 12-lug wheels, 12.00X 24 tires. The front and rear "fender" structures are formed from a 96-inch wide sheet of 1.5 in thick steel, linked by two steel-plate beams 16 inch high by 3 in thick! Including the added weights over the wheels, it is 30,000 lbs at least. Trying to post some photos but am new to this. Thanks, Joel

 

[NDT]

I think it is a Stewart and Stevenson.

 

[mcginlej]

Thanks for the suggestion - the shape is similar, but all the S & S tugs appear to have the driver in a forward cab- in this unit, he sits in the middle and high. I tried to reach S&S and heard "we don't have that division anymore". The suggestions they gave me instead went all over- such as BAE (British?).... Oh - don't be confused by the Chevrolet Pickup just to the right of the Tug. Any other ideas? Joel

 

[maddawg308]

Perhaps it's a Grove aircraft tug? There aren't many manufacturers for the big tugs, Google Search is your friend....

 

[tamangel]

wouldn't the museum have some sort of paper trail for the 'donation'? Seems..someone..would have to have cut paper on it for aquisition/tax purposes..

Mike W

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