On Thursday, August 22, 2013 9:17:22 AM UTC-6, son_of_flubber wrote:
Any information on the economics of hangaring a glider would be welcome. Rent, buy, new, used, geographic location, "sunshade" to weather-tight, gliding season length?



Also. What is the demand (and demand trend) for glider hangars? Are hangars available for rent or sale where you fly?



How much is owning one a money losing proposition?

A 20 bay hangar may run $125k-$200k depending on design, location and amenities. As a result, rental in such will run $75-$100/month. There was a quick and dirty survey done last year and those were common rentals in multi-bay hangars at soaring locations. MASA has the most recent group hangar building project that I'm aware of at Fairfield and abandoned a large hangar at Frederick Municipal airport with expiration of their lease. Sunflower Gliderport has one that must be about 20 bays (t-bays, back to back). The Silent Knights in Ames, IA, rent from the municipal airport. Two gliders fit normally fit in a hangar bay at my club. $80/month prime season, $40/month off season. A 5th glider may be split between two bays at the back of the hangar if over 18m span, but seldom done as a result of low demand. Good rigging aids are much cheaper than a hangar, but I know some locales like to winter trailers in hangars also. There are several variations on a theme, such as the carousel hangar at Moriarty, t-hangars like the Ensign, and the quonset hut we had in the UK. That particular hangar showed me that a long hangar served from both ends is much more cost effective than side loading hangars, unless, of course, your self-launcher is stuffed five deep on a Weds. Albuquerque Soaring Club also has about a 12-14 bay hangar. No idea on the monthly. Soaring Sooners at Hinton, OK, used to be about $75/month in the city airport hangar, which housed about 10-11 gliders and the FBO towplane with room for more.

A busy site such as Boulder is home to a large club, 175 members, and a commercial operation. Both rent hangar space for tow planes, but gliders are either tied out or trailered. There are no glider hangars on the glider side of the airport. If there are any gliders hangared there, I've not heard of it.

Frank Whiteley