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Ergonomic design, like that used to craft Lindy's Aircraft tugs, takes into account the many shapes and sizes of the human form. In designing material handling products, trucks, airplanes, industrial equipment, office chairs, desk heights and nearly everything else, manufacturers used to position seats, steps, controls, platforms, steering wheels, etc. to&suit the "average man."

The problem is there is no such thing as "average." Men come in all shapes and sizes: tall or short, skinny or round, heavy-weights or bantams, muscled or not. Then, of course, designing for the "average man" completely ignores the physical needs of women, now 50% of the U.S. workforce. Researchers found that when workers had to stretch, strain and stoop to use equipment, injuries shot up and productivity plummeted. The need to correct these problems led to the development of ergonomics.

In an ideal world, equipment would be infinitely adjustable to accommodate any worker. However, as anyone with engineering or manufacturing experience knows, the ideal is rarely practical or cost effective. Ergonomics comes as close as possible by designing equipment that can be adjusted within reasonable ranges to accommodate a wide variety of workers.

How is this done? By takings hundreds, even thousands of measurements. There are firms that specialize in statistical measurement. Say a manufacturer wants to know how far from the seat to position a truck steering wheel. Technicians will measure the bodies of hundreds of working truckers. They break the body down into muscle groups and appendages and take dozens of measurements. Ergonomic engineers like those at Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Co. use these measurements to guide their designs. That's how Lindy's Aircraft Tugs can be used with equal ease by a skinny college kid, the grandma who mans your phones or your beefy operations manager.

It can be a real strain to get a heavy airplane up the incline that seems to lead into most hangers and over that annoying lip right where the hanger meets the apron or ground. The laws of physics tell us that it takes more force to push a heavy object uphill, but for some reason the amount of muscle effort required to maneuver a heavy aircraft over that tiny elevated bump at the edge of the hanger seems worthy of Hercules or the Hulk. In that 1/2 inch to an inch of pavement differential lies tremendous potential risk for injury.

Anyone who has used resistance training to build up his abs knows that muscles strain harder against resistance. When the airplane wheel bumps up against that lip at the edge of the hanger, it creates resistance. Generally, when pushing or pulling a heavy object, the greatest effort is required to overcome inertia and put that object in motion. However, the resistance created when a wheel impacts an obstacle requires similar excess effort to overcome the resistance to forward movement created by the obstacle. The body's muscles are forced to work harder which can result in painful muscle strain. The risk increases as FBO workers perform this operation again and again, day after day.

The same type of problem can occur at small grass and dirt airstrips where airplanes must be manually maneuvered across bumpy fields. Each step across the field can require unanticipated fluctuations in muscle exertion as you push and pull airplanes over small bumps caused by weather or frost upheaval.

Lindy's AircraftCaddys are ergonomically designed to eliminate muscle strain caused by pushing or pulling heavy aircraft over uneven surfaces, up inclines and over annoying bumps at hanger entrances. Lindy's aircraft tractors andaircraft tugs allow you to maneuver airplanes up to 35,000 pounds with ease. Visit the Lindbergh Aircraft Tug Co. website for more info.

Ergonomic design is one of the features that sets Lindy's aircraft tugs above the competition. Ergonomics is the science of fitting the equipment to the person, not forcing the person to contort his body into uncomfortable positions to operate the equipment. Most equipment is built as one size fits all. But we all know that people come in all shapes and sizes: tall and short, fat and thin, muscle-bound and average Joe or Jill. Ergonomic design is the great equalizer. Ergonomics makes it possible for a 24-year-old, weightlifting stud and a feisty, 55-year-old grandmother to operate the same motor-powered aircraft tow with equal ease. Ergonomics takes physical size and ability out of the work equation.

Ergonomics was developed to minimize the overexertion and cumulative trauma that often occur during manual lifting, pushing, pulling and, stretching tasks, such as stacking heavy airplanes in a hangar or moving them onto the flight line. Particularly when such tasks must be performed repeatedly, damage to soft muscle tissues especially of the back and shoulders can occur. When the burden of maneuvering heavy airplanes is shifted from the operator to the material handling equipment, as it is in the ergonomic design of Lindy's aircraft tractor, inappropriate exertion is eliminated and the risk of musculoskeletal injury is significantly reduced.

With pilots getting older, that's something to consider. The average age of active pilots was 52 in 2000, and more than 63,000 pilots over the age of 60 hold current medical certificates, according to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association website. Some pilots are still going strong into their 90s! While age doesn't affect their ability to pilot a plane, it probably affects their ability to move one without injuring themselves. The ergonomic design of Lindy's aircraft tugs decreases the chance of that happening.

Lindy's ergonomically-designed, walk-behind ;aircraft tugs are a safe alternative to gas-powered lawn-mower drive aircraft movers. As noted in our August 14 post, on a recent trip to Alaska, tugs were much in evidence at Anchorage's Ted Stevens International Airport. The world's third busiest shipping hub (after Atlanta and Hong Kong), Anchorage buzzed with tugs in constant motion towing small and mid-sized planes around the tarmac, to and from hangers, and into position on runways. Tugs competed with other planes, ground crews and equipment, and waiting passengers for space. The volume of people and equipment sharing the same small space seemed a recipe for disaster. It was the perfect application for Lindy's aircraft tugs; here's why:

• Lindy's aircraft tugs are compactly designed for quick and easy maneuverability in tight spaces. Stacking is faster and easier with Lindy's tugs than with conventional, bulky rider tugs.
• Lindy's battery-operated aircraft tugs are designed for quiet operation, diminishing hanger/tarmac noise, ensuring that operators have full use of all senses, including hearing, for maximum safety.
• Lindy's aircraft tugs are ergonomically designed to be operated by a single individual without stress or strain, protecting the health and safety of employees and allowing maximum use of personnel. One-man design makes them a perfect solution for individual owners, corporations and small FBOs.
• Lindy's walk-behind tugs are less costly than rider tugs, making them affordable for use as hanger equipment or secondary tugs when rider tugs are in use. Affordability and one-person handling makes Lindy's tugs the perfect solution for individual owners, corporations, private airstrips and smaller FBOs.
• Lindy's aircraft tugs place the nose wheel of the aircraft over the center point of the tug's drive wheels, creating better traction in Alaska's difficult weather conditions.

For more information on Lindy's Aircraft Tugs, visit our website.

Recently I read a story in one of the many aviation safety magazines I subscribe to. The story was about a pilot who tried to fly through weather using only uplinked next -rad weather radar. The flight did not end well for the pilot who lost control of the plane when he flew into a thunderstorm.
This is an example of technology in the cockpit that can kill you if you do not understand how it works. Dont get me wrong; I am a HUGE fan of uplink weather in the cockpit, but I understand that the next-rad radar images it displays is no less than 6 minutes old. Even a slow aircraft will 12 miles in six minutes. I would never consider penetrating a line of weather without on board weather radar.

How many of you are using uplinked weather services while flying now? How are you using it? What are your experiences using it? How many of you want it but don't want to pay for it? What if the service was free? Would you be willing to pay to install the requisite equipment in the aircraft in order to use it?  Where am I going with this? ADB-S.

Let me hear from you!

M.Leighton

To learn more about Training and Saftey visit www.tmfintm.com !

FLYING LESSONS uses the past week’s aircraft mishap reports to consider what might have contributed to accidents, so you can make better decisions if you face similar circumstances.

• Fuel, air, ignition
• Pilot-induced engine failure
• A call to action

For more information, analysis and commentary see www.flyinglessonsweekly.com.

Fly safe, and have fun!

Thomas P. Turner, M.S. Aviation Safety MCFI
2008 FAA Central Region CFI of the Year
www.thomaspturner.net