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A Utah Valley University student uses a remote control to move an electric vehicle meant to move airplanes to the runway during a public demonstration at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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Utah Valley University students test an autonomous electric vehicle meant to move airplanes to the runway during a public demonstration at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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Utah Valley University students assemble at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024, to test an autonomous electric vehicle meant to move airplanes to the runway.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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Utah Valley University students attempt to hook an autonomous electric vehicle to a small aircraft to tug the plane at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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A small plane used by the Utah Valley University aviation school sits at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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The inside of an autonomous electric vehicle meant to move airplanes to the runway is pictured at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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The inside gears of an autonomous electric vehicle meant to move airplanes to the runway, pictured at the Provo Airport on Friday, April 12, 2024.

Carlene Coombs, Daily Herald

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Utah Valley University students on Friday had their first public test on an electric vehicle prototype that aims to reduce emissions from airplanes, increase airport safety and save on fuel costs.

The vehicle’s purpose is to move planes to and from the airport gate and runway, all while the plane keeps the engines off, reducing emissions and fuel usage.

Friday’s test at the Provo Airport ran into some hiccups, unfortunately, with a small gear connected to the prototype’s front axle breaking during testing. Earlier in the day, before media and community members arrived, the students and professors completed a successful run, they said.

UVU provided a video of the successful test run before the event, which showed the vehicle capably tugging a small passenger plane across the tarmac.

At the second test, one of the students operated the vehicle via a remote control to drive it over to the plane, but this time, it was unsuccessful in connecting to the aircraft’s front wheel and was unable to tug it.

While the test didn’t go as planned, Brett Stone, one of the UVU professors assisting on the project, said they will continue to work on it and he hopes they will be able to showcase it Tuesday with the rest of the College of Engineering capstone projects.

Overall, Stone said the purpose of their project is to make airports “safer, cleaner and less noisy.”

The end goal is to develop a machine that is large enough to pull a commercial airplane, like a 737. The current prototype is much smaller and was being tested Friday on a four-seat passenger plane.

Stone also mentioned a recent death at the Salt Lake City International Airport, where a passenger got onto the tarmac and climbed into a jet engine, saying that keeping engines off before and after using the runway would make tarmacs safer.

“You’re saving on work, you’re saving people’s lives in various ways and just making it nicer and quieter and (a) better airport experience for everybody,” he said.

Stone said the research for the project began in 2022, with the actual project beginning around the start of the fall semester.

According to Stone, it is estimated that if this technology were utilized on the most popular plane at the Salt Lake City airport, the Embraer 175 aircraft, it would save around $2.3 million in fuel costs per plane each year.

Matt Hanks, a UVU senior and one of the project’s team leads, said there have been many iterations of different parts as they work through the various mechanical functions of their plane-towing vehicle.

“There’s been a lot of fine-tuning with all of that and ordering different parts and trying new systems and everything. So it’s come a long way,” Hanks said.

Stone said he has been impressed with the students’ work, especially considering they all have yet to earn a degree.

“They’ve been incredible,” he said. “This is usually something that grad students would work on, but these are all undergraduates. … It’s been a labor of love for them.” Stone said the group is made up of computer science and engineering seniors.

Hanks said his favorite part of the project has been working with the other students.

“I’ve been really lucky with the people that have been on this,” he said. “We’ve all worked really well together and I think that just really helps mitigate a lot of issues that can come up when working with a big group.”

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