Tight Hangar Squeeze

[H.Agenda]

I have 3 to 6 inches wing clearance a side depending on fuel loading. Its never fun, but you get used to it.

Stripes on the ground are a must..and a more precise tug would help.

Tug suggestions; do a google for "lil sherman," and "getjet" you'll be able to navigate to the main page and find different sizes.

 

[jaxpilot]

dang, when I worked the line at CRG we had a few Piper Malibus that had their own T-hangars. There would be maybe 3 inches on each side of the wing as it was going thru the hangar door. We always used a wing walker and made sure we got it right on the line, no correcting halfway in. We used a Lektro but there are other brands (JetPorter, etc). Im a pretty good tug driver thanks to working the line for a few years.

 

[NewBlue]

And when you start to push, make VERY sure that the hangar doors are open all the way.

 

[Cheebs501]

Has anyone ever seen tracks built into the floor. I saw a 182 in a hangar that barely fit. Someone built metal tracks into the floor so that all three wheels had to be perfectly positioned in the tracks to be centered. The only problem I see with this is getting off a little bit and chewing up the tires. Seemed like a good idea though.

How much do Lektro's run?

 

[FlyingFisherman]

Neatest thing I've seen is in a really really really tight broom closet of a hangar there was a winch fixed to the back wall of the hangar with a metal track guiding in the tailwheel of the airplane. Fix winch to tailwheel and crank airplane into hangar.

Probably wouldn't take too much imagination and some 4" steel bent square fixed to the floor (2" up, 2" holding it down) as a wheel guide. Turn on your fancy electric winch and crank the airplane in.

Oooh even better...took my truck through the car wash. pulled the left side onto their track, in neutral and it pulled me through the wash. Same deal with the hangar conveyor

 

[FL420]

Neatest thing I've seen is in a really really really tight broom closet of a hangar there was a winch fixed to the back wall of the hangar with a metal track guiding in the tailwheel of the airplane. Fix winch to tailwheel and crank airplane into hangar.

Probably wouldn't take too much imagination and some 4" steel bent square fixed to the floor (2" up, 2" holding it down) as a wheel guide. Turn on your fancy electric winch and crank the airplane in.

FF beat me to it. An electric winch on the back wall perfectly centered on the door opening with steel U-channel tracks fastened to the floor for all 3(or at least the 2 main gear) wheels will ensure the a/c is perfectly centered every time. A good long-armed towbar for steering is essential.

 

[FlyingFisherman]

It actually sounds like a fun build.

 

[Diesel]

We had this problem in two of our hangers.

The first one we actually just took a cutting torch and cut the sides of the hangers. We only needed about 6 inches on either side. Make sure you cut enough for when the plane is empty and when it's fueled.

Then we had another problem where we would put a navajo in a corner and then the king air "around" it. Took a lot of time and if you got screwed up it would take a long time to undo. We used a lektro tug that made turning on a dime very easy. Sometimes we would have to unhook and then come in at a different angle.

Remember 1 inch on the nose= 1 foot of tail movement. Go slow.

 

[rchcfi]

This coming from an ex-lineboy that had extensive towing experience.

The one other thing you MUST consider is how the door opens and closes. Is it a fold up door or one that runs along tracks? The reason I ask is that pushing a jet or twin into a hangar that has recessed tracks can create some lateral movement. Even if you have all tires lined up on the paint stripes, as soon as you hit those recessed tracks, Einstein's theory of relativity or whatever takes over. The aircraft will settle, shake, wobble, or whatever. That little bit of monkey motion can cause one wing to kiss the side if it is too close.

 

[Cheebs501]

It is a fold up door, the dimensions of the hangar are 54.5Wide X 59.5Deep and it has 19ft clearance under the door.

 

[Diesel]

just cut the sides. will save you a ton of problems