Tugboats are a unique type of ship that can tow other ships. It is commonly used to transport ships without FTL drives, or ships that are too big to dock inside any other ship that you own.
To tug a ship that's floating in space, autopilot to it and then use the TUG command. If the ship is owned by you, empty, or if you get permission from the pilot inside, then you are able to begin tugging it.
You can also connect a tug line from a docking bay or landing pad. Make sure both ships are present on the bay or pad, then type TUG to connect them.
When a ship is being tugged, it will follow you on autopilot and through FTL jumps. It cannot follow through quantum skim accelerator gates or through the rift.
To disconnect the tow line in space, the UNTUG command may be used in either ship. On a bay or pad, you can break the connection by transporting either ship into the garage or using the UNTUG command.
While in space, a pilot may transfer from a tugboat to the tugged ship via the tow line by using the OUT command in the airlock, similar to being docked. If the UNTUG command is then used within the tugged ship, the empty tugboat will disconnect the tow line and automatically travel back to where it last launched from. This is useful for transporting FTL-less ships by yourself.
