Private and small commercial aircraft such as planes and helicopters are assets that require special storage space. Airplane hangars ensure their security and proper upkeep. From individual pilots who fly for recreation, to small aviation businesses, choosing to rent or buy your hangar is critical.
Considerations When Choosing to Buy or Rent
Hangers are necessary for storing and protecting valuable aircraft such as airplanes and helicopters. A fully custom airplane or helicopter hangar is a great purchase the average pilot or small business can’t readily afford. Where savings, financing, and other payment possibilities fall short, sometimes renting a hangar is the most low-cost solution.
The cost to buy an airplane hangar is certainly suggests a serious purchase. In particular, great cost comes with custom-designed buildings and spaces with special systems. However, cost and price alone shouldn’t be your only considerations when determining whether to buy or rent. The advantages of owning an airplane hangar versus renting one are many.
Factors Other Than the Hangar Rental Cost
By buying in an airplane hangar you own, you can come upon a number of benefits over renting:
- Greater savings over time
- Customized hangar space for awkward/large aircraft parts
- Controlled and predictable aircraft storage space
- Portability for specific geographic locations/features
- Reduced costs for infrequent flyers
- Assured asset protection
- Additional revenue opportunity
Let’s explain in more detail…
Investment:
Buying can save pilots and businesses with aircraft assets a lot of money in the long run. A custom-designed airplane hangar, highly durable frame such as the facilities manufactured by Alaska Structures™, is a huge purchase. Renting a hangar for a single small airplane can cost a pilot several hundred dollars per month. The annual cost is around $6,000 on average. By purchasing your aircraft hangar, you may be able to reduce your operating budget by as much as 50%.
Customization:
Airplane and helicopters come in all sorts of sizes, with unique wingspans, auxiliary
propellers, and other parts that take up space. Guiding the aircraft into and out of its hangar requires plenty of clearance. Renting an airplane hangar limits your choices for customization. However, purchasing a custom hangar allows you to design your facility to accommodate the particular storage and space you require.
Reliability:
If you rent your hangar, you may run into some problems if the owner rents space to other pilots. For example, if you fly in at an unusual or unscheduled time, you may find your hangar is occupied. This leads to frustration, hassle, and even additional costs if you have to rent another space. Additionally, some airports and cities with high air traffic have limited availability with leasable fixed-wing aircraft or rotorcraft storage space. Purchasing your own hangar allows you to skip waiting lists and have a hangar available to your needs.
Portability:
Flying is a mobile profession, and many pilots will require their aircraft to 
move with them. A rented airplane hangar is rarely so hospitable. Alternatively, an airplane or helicopter hangar specially designed for portability offers the flexibility to move from place to place. Alaska Structures designs hangars engineered for easy transport and quick setup in far and rugged environments. Our portable airplane or helicopter hangars require the absolute minimum site preparation. Set-up of our frames can occur on almost any base (even on reasonably level dirt and/gravel).
Reduced Cost:
While renting an airplane hangar is instantly cheaper than buying your own hangar, leasing space can be painfully costly. Especially for infrequent flyers or businesses that don’t regularly use their aircraft. If you buy an airplane or rotorcraft storage facility instead, simply use your hangar when you need it, preventing unnecessary costs. Even if you use a loan to buy your hangar, you will have cost savings in the future. A fixed monthly payment goes into the space that you’ll eventually own and instead of paying rent forever.
Safety & Security:
A hangar is more than simply a large garage or warehouse. The 
asset(s) it protects require more specialized storage space to keep them in top shape and best performance. All leased hangars aren’t able to withstand the extreme and/or harsh weather of some climates. Heat, monsoon dust storms, rain, hail, and other weather conditions can quickly degrade the outside materials of your aircraft. Not only increasing the need for cleaning and upkeep, but taking years off of the life of your plane. Our engineering design especially withstands extreme weather, even over many years of use. Additionally, third party experts independently tested and certified our design. With an Alaska Structures airplane hangar, your airplane and helicopter asset is safe from the weather, bringing years of reliable use.
Revenue-Enhancing:
If your airplane and helicopter hangar site is in a popular area, you can take advantage of extra unused space. By renting it out to other pilots, you can bring in more money. Additionally, you have the choice to rent out the entire space, or sell it when the time is right. This makes owning your hangar a profitable scheme.
Learn more about our airplane hangars! Send us an email or call +1-907-344-1565. Our building specialists will help you start a custom design for your new frame!
Leave a Reply