To reduce noise, emission and fuel consumption of aircraft's taxiing at airport, powered wheel on landing gear was investigated experimentally and theoretically. The configurations of powered wheel driven by hydraulic motor and electric motor were proposed historically. Roll friction transmission, gear reducer transmission and direct transmission were adopted. With the global environmental problem and energy crisis being more and more prominent, powered wheel becomes one of the focuses of aviation industry again. This paper reviewed the background, history and current status of powered wheel for aircraft, and summarized its research emphases and development trend. The findings of our work showed that powered wheels for aircraft can reduce noise, emission and fuel consumption of aircraft at airport remarkably, and those driven directly by in-wheel electric motors installed on nose landing gears are the most promising wheels.