Equipment checks for airport ground support
Daily GSE checks for every tug, belt loader and GPU, shift after shift.
CheckBadges gives every tug, belt loader, baggage cart, GPU and deicer a QR sticker that opens its daily checklist. Ramp agents scan it with their own phone before they take the unit and finish the check in the browser, with no app or login. A defect emails GSE maintenance with photos at once and warns every agent who scans that unit until it's fixed.
What pre-use checks have to handle
Units shared across shifts
A tug runs three shifts with three drivers. Each check carries the driver's name and the time, so you can see which shifts checked it.
Damage found at the gate
A belt loader bumper damaged overnight shows up as an open problem, with photos, to the morning crew before they drive it to an aircraft.
Agents who come and go
New ramp agents start every few weeks. They scan with their own phone; there's nothing to install and no account to set up.
Mixed fleets
Diesel tugs, electric belt loaders, towable GPUs and unpowered carts each need different questions. Each unit uses its own checklist.
Audits from airlines and programs
Airline customers and programs like IATA's ISAGO audit ground handlers. A dated record per unit is easy to show.
Seasonal equipment
Deicers sit parked until the first frost. A full check before they go back into service is on record with who did it.
How a ground handler runs GSE checks with QR codes
Each unit gets a QR sticker where the driver gets on or the operator stands: the tug's dash, the belt loader's control panel, the GPU's control box, a cart's drawbar. The agent scans it before taking the unit and their phone opens that unit's checklist. A defect needs a note and can carry up to three photos.
An early bank at a regional station with 60 powered units:
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 4:30 a.m. | Agents arrive. Each scans the tug or belt loader they're assigned in the GSE parking area: brakes, steering, lights, horn, hitch and pin, tires, leaks, fuel or charge. |
| 4:38 a.m. | On belt loader 12, an agent marks the rubber bumper as a Problem: "torn, metal showing", with two photos. GSE maintenance and the ramp supervisor get the email. |
| 4:40 a.m. | Belt loader 12 shows red on the dashboard. The supervisor sends belt loader 15 to the gate instead. |
| 5:00 a.m. | The supervisor checks the dashboard: which units have been checked today and which haven't. |
| 7:30 a.m. | Maintenance replaces the bumper and marks the problem fixed with a note. |
| 1:30 p.m. | The afternoon shift scans their units, including belt loader 12, which shows no open problem. |
What the rules and audits expect
There's no single US regulation that sets out a daily GSE checklist, so what you check comes from the equipment manufacturers, your airline customers' ground handling requirements and your own ground operations manual. Audits test whether you do what those say. IATA describes its Safety Audit for Ground Operations as "a global safety oversight program" for ground handling service providers, and airlines run their own audits of handlers.
Some GSE may also fall under OSHA's powered industrial truck standard, whose scope names "tractors" as well as forklifts (29 CFR 1910.178(a)(1)). Where it applies, trucks must be examined before being placed in service, at least daily. Which units it covers is a question for your safety team. This isn't legal advice.
Building GSE checklists
The free checklists here are for forklifts, vehicles, trailers and generators, not GSE, so use them as starting points and edit them, or start blank in the checklist maker. Some starting points:
- Tugs and tractors: brakes, steering, lights, horn, hitch and pin, tires, leaks, fuel or charge, seat belt, the hour meter as a number.
- Belt loaders: belt condition and tracking, bumpers, side rails, stabilizers, raise and lower, emergency stop, leaks.
- GPUs: cable and plug condition, controls, panel doors, leaks, fuel.
- Baggage carts and dollies: drawbar, brakes, wheels, curtains or doors.
Keep each list short enough to finish before the first departure; see how to write a pre-use inspection checklist.
What you get
- Defect emails to GSE maintenance and supervisors, with photos, the moment a check is submitted.
- A warning for the next agent on that unit until maintenance marks it fixed.
- Today at a glance: which units have been checked today and which have open problems.
- A history for every unit, printable for an audit and exportable as CSV, with a row per check or per answer.
What it costs
CheckBadges is free for up to 3 machines. Pro is $9 a month for your first 3 machines, plus $1.50 a month for each machine after that, so 60 powered units is $94.50 a month. Stickering 100 carts and dollies as well brings it to $244.50 a month, so decide which units need their own history. Agents are unlimited.
When CheckBadges isn't the right fit
CheckBadges has no GSE telematics, GPS or utilization tracking, and it can't lock a unit until the check is done. It doesn't raise work orders or schedule maintenance, it has no integrations or SSO, and it needs a data connection. If your ramp limits phone use near aircraft, do checks in the GSE parking area before units go to the gate.
Free checklists for airport ground support
Print them, or put each one on a QR sticker so operators fill it in on their phone.
- Free checklistVehicle inspection checklistFree daily vehicle inspection checklist for company cars, pickups, vans and work trucks: tires, lights, brakes, fluids, mirrors, load and body damage.
- Free checklistForklift inspection checklistFree forklift inspection checklist for the OSHA daily pre-shift check: 30 visual and operating checks with what a pass looks like. Print it or use QR codes.
- Free checklistTrailer inspection checklistFree trailer inspection checklist for equipment, utility and semi-trailers: hitch, safety chains, breakaway, lights, brakes, tires, ramps and tie-downs.
- Free checklistGenerator inspection checklistFree generator inspection checklist for portable and towable units: fuel, oil, coolant, leaks, exhaust and CO, grounding, GFCI outlets, cords and controls.
Set it up in three steps
- 01
Add your machines
Name your business, list your machines and pick a starting checklist. No signup, sales call or card — make an account once you like it.
- 02
Stick on their QR codes
Every machine gets its own sticker. Print them on label paper and put each one where operators look before they start.
- 03
Operators scan and check
Phone camera, tap, answer, submit: about a minute. A problem emails you and warns the next person to scan that machine.
Frequently asked questions
What should a GSE daily inspection include?
For powered units: brakes, steering, lights, horn, hitch and towing pin, tires, fluid leaks, fuel or charge, and controls and emergency stops, plus unit-specific items such as a belt loader's bumpers and belt. Start from the manufacturer's daily checks and your airline customers' requirements.
Is there a regulation requiring daily GSE inspections?
There's no single US regulation that sets out a daily GSE checklist. Manufacturers' manuals, airline customers' requirements and ground handling audits set the expectations, and some units, such as tractors, may fall under OSHA's powered industrial truck standard, which requires a daily examination.
Can ramp agents use their personal phones for GSE checks?
Yes. They scan the unit's QR sticker with the camera and do the check in the browser, with no app or account. If your ramp restricts phone use near aircraft, have agents do checks in the GSE parking area before taking the unit to the gate.
Does CheckBadges track GSE location or hours?
No. There's no GPS or telematics. You can record the hour meter as a number question on each check, which gives you a reading per unit per check in the CSV export.
Keep reading
- Checklist makerMake your own equipment inspection checklist: start from a forklift, lift, loader or vehicle checklist, edit the items, then print a daily sheet or weekly log.
- Write a pre-use checklistHow to write a pre-use inspection checklist: start from the manual, follow the walkaround, say what a pass looks like, keep it to 10–25 items and test it.
- Equipment inspection appAn equipment inspection app where operators scan a QR sticker on any machine and do its check in the browser. No app or login. Instant alerts, history per machine.
- QR code equipment checklistA QR code equipment checklist: a sticker on each machine opens its pre-use check on any phone, with no app or login. Problems email you. Free for 3 machines.
- Pencil whippingPencil whipping is ticking an inspection checklist without doing the inspection. Why it happens, the warning signs in your records and how to stop it.
- WarehousesWarehouse forklift checklists on a QR sticker per truck. Operators and temps scan with their phone, no app or login. Problems email you and warn the next shift.
Check every tug and belt loader on the ramp with one scan.
Stick a QR code on every machine and operators do the pre-use check on their own phone — no app, no login. Free for up to 3 machines; try it with your real machines before you sign up.