Aircraft hangars

Steel aircraft hangars

A hangar is a clear-span portal frame with an unusually demanding opening in one end. Everything about the design follows from three numbers: the wingspan you need to clear, the tail height you need under the eaves, and the width of the door opening.

Request a quote Sizes & prices

Wide-span steel structure of the kind used for aircraft hangars

The short version

The door is the hard part. A hangar door opening removes most of one gable, which is exactly the panel that would normally brace the frame against wind along its length. That bracing has to be replaced elsewhere in the structure, and it is why a hangar costs more than a shed of identical dimensions.

Our standard designs clear-span to 30m, which covers private and light-commercial aircraft comfortably; wider is quoted per job. Structures are designed by a civil engineer with a drawing and certificate supplied on request — which you will need for plan approval and for your insurer.

What you get

Specified for the job, not for a catalogue.

Clear span to 30m standard: No internal columns between the wingtips. Wider spans quoted per job.
Eaves to 6.0m standard: Higher eaves quoted per job where tail height demands it.
Door opening engineered in: The bracing lost to the door opening is designed back into the frame from the outset.
Galvanised IBR sheeting: Standard, at a 10° roof pitch, with all fasteners and foundation bolts included.
Insulation and ventilators: Worth specifying. A sheeted roof over a closed hangar builds serious heat, and condensation drips onto aircraft.
Delivered or erected: Erected by our own team in South Africa, or supplied flat-packed for owner erection and export.

Sizing it

Which standard size suits.

A starting point, not a limit — we custom-manufacture any size. The full table of nine standard sizes, the standard specification and the options is on the sizes and prices page.

15 × 30 × 4.5m
A single light aircraft with working room around it.
20 × 30 × 4.5m
Two light aircraft, or one with a workshop area down one flank.
20 × 40 × 6.0m
Higher tail clearance and depth for a larger single aircraft plus equipment.
30 × 48 × 6.0m
The widest standard clear span — multiple aircraft under one roof.

Structures 2000 standard portal frame sizes: clear span width, length and eaves height in metres.
Width (span)	Length	Height (eaves)	Floor area
6m	10m	2.4m	60 m²
9m	20m	3.6m	180 m²
12m	25m	3.6m	300 m²
15m	30m	4.5m	450 m²
20m	30m	4.5m	600 m²
20m	40m	6.0m	800 m²
20m	42m	6.0m	840 m²
25m	48m	6.0m	1 200 m²
30m	48m	6.0m	1 440 m²

These are the sizes we hold designs for. We custom-manufacture any size to suit the site.

Typical uses

What people put in them.

Private and recreational aircraft hangars
Light-commercial and charter operations
Farm airstrip hangars
Maintenance and workshop hangars
Combined hangar and workshop buildings
Helicopter shelters

Built

Related work.

All projects

Industrial & workshops40m wide
40m wide steel structure
A 40m wide structure carried on an internal row of columns, the widest configuration in the range.

Questions

Aircraft hangars, answered.

More on plans, foundations, costs and lead times in the full FAQ.

What size hangar do I need for my aircraft?

Start with wingspan plus clearance for the span, tail height plus clearance for the eaves, and length plus room to move around the nose. Then decide whether you want workshop or storage area alongside, because adding a flank bay at the outset is far cheaper than extending later. Send us those figures and we will quote to them.

Do you supply the hangar door?

We manufacture and engineer the structure, including designing the frame around the door opening you specify. Tell us the opening width and height and the type of door you intend to use at enquiry stage — it materially changes the frame design, so it cannot be decided afterwards.

Why does a hangar cost more than a shed the same size?

The door opening. Removing most of one gable removes the panel that would normally brace the frame lengthwise against wind, so that bracing has to be engineered back in through the roof plane and the remaining walls. You are paying for the opening, not for the floor area.

Do I need approved plans for an aircraft hangar?

Yes. It is a permanent structure, so approved building plans are required before construction commences, and there may be additional requirements depending on the airfield. We supply the engineer's drawing and certificate for the building plan submission.

Also