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Driving your airplane out of the hangar

RV3bpilot

Well Known Member
I heard an airplane start up yesterday morning while I was working in my hangar and it sounded like it was very close and loud so I opened the service door to take a look to see which neighbor it was going for a flight and if I knew him. To my surprise I saw the aircraft emerging nose first from the hangar as he reved up the engine to get the plane moving, he had to really give it the gas to get it moving because of the zero degree air temperature because at that termperature the rubber on the tires are real stiff kind of like wooded blocks rather than wheels.
I can not believe it did not blow the tin off the hangar, wow, that had to be a lot of air pressure in the hangar when he reved it up to get out.
I wonder if he would have done that to his own building, "these are city owned units here"....:eek:
 
I watched a guy drive a light twin *into* a hangar one time. Just taxied up, turned to face the hanger and drover 'er right on in. Junk flying all out of the hangar, papers, dirt, debris, you name it.

The things people will do to save a few minutes...mystifying.
 
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Classic:

clearshangar.jpg


(not my photo.)
 
I do it all the time.. in and out. I keep my hanger clean so no trash to blow. I am at a private grass strip, hard to push plane by myself on grass. I would take my Decathlon and pull it into the hanger until the tailwheel was on the concrete, then shutdown and get out and swing tail around and push to back. No way I could cut decathlon off outside and push it in by myself.
 
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Seems the willingness to do such a thing would require at least 3, perhaps more, things:

1. You don't own the hangar, and none of your stuff is in it.
2. You are not responsible for cleaning the hangar (and don't care about the person who is).
3. You don't ever want to be invited back.

I reckon if you do own it, and keep it free of everything but the plane…or are a STOL manufacturer and cleared it out for a super-cool PR demo, it might be different. (Jon, just saw your post above, and it sounds like that's the case…no dis intended)

We taxied 22 RVs into a hangar (in formation) at Nellis AFB in 2010 during Aviation Nation…now that was different! But we had USAF taxi directors…and it was a very big hangar (with doors on both sides)! We did not taxi out of it though!

Normal ops though, I won't even turn my tail at someone's hangar (or mine) with the engine running…even with the door closed. Just a courtesy thing!

Cheers,
Bob
(Chief Hangar Clean-up Engineer at my place)
 
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Yours, mine or shared?

Personally I think both taxiing in and out of a hanger is bad practice. Taxiing in slightly less so because at least all the rubbish is blown out rather than in, but its still fraught with danger.

One of our group decided to taxi in and hit something and caused damage. Normally I do all the repair work but I made him get it done professionally at his expense this time. What was even more annoying was that the professional repair was bad and I had to re do it!!

If its your hanger and there is no one else's property in there you can do what you want. If you want to risk damaging your stuff that is your business, but I would not fly with you if I saw you doing it.

If I saw someone doing this in a shared but not my hangar I would have words with the pilot concerned and leave a note for the owners of other aeroplanes in the hanger in case any damage was caused. I once challenged a commercial pilot in front of all his passengers because of similar behavior when he pivoted my Tailwind through 90 degrees almost smashing the elevator into something. The only reason it did not was because I saw it coming and caught the fin and retrained it.

If its my hangar....... well lets just say you would not have access to it any more!!

If your aeroplane is too heavy.... build some muscle, get some help, buy a tow bar, buy a motorised tow bar!! Remember people often follow misjudged behavior and while what you do may only affect your things, when they do it it might affect other peoples property.

Don't expect people to follow what you say and not your example, but you can expect them to follow your example especially if its a poor one.
 
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I think it is bad practice at a city owned facility where in most T hangers they are open at the top and all that dirt and debris gets blown the ought the other hangers and your trying to keep your plane clean.
What if your doing an engine work or have your canopy open and all that junk gets blown in to your hanger.

Your hanger by itself do as you wish. But I have never seen too many hangers free of stuff that could be picked up by the prop and nick it.

I'd ask the fellow to be a little considerate of other planes.

Along this line. I remember a fellow who thought about painting his aircraft in his T hanger. Cleaned his hanger out good washed the floor down and started painting... He had to pay to have 3 other aircraft cleaned of overspray in adjacent units.

Jack
 
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I don't fire up and taxi out of my hanger but...

I do taxi up my grass incline and stop when the mains of my 6 make it onto the slab. Shut down, exit and swing the tail around inside. Risky? Some risk sure, but I've just been FLYING in an airplane that was built in someones garage! Just like any other part of the flight, use your head about it. No FOD, ready to go for the mixture and key if brakes fail or throttle goes wide open :eek: (I drive my car into the garage under power too:D)

JimS
 
Love Australians!!

Would you believe it is a illegal...and that of strict liability to do so in Aus. :rolleyes:

There is so much good common sense stuff written into law in Australia, well done yet again the Ausies...... that is till you beat us at Cricket again!!
 
Drivers /Pilots/Flyers/Aviators

I know what the problem is now. Americans think its cool to call pilots drivers, why I don't know but they do.

In the UK we know that driving has nothing to do with flying so while we might drive our cars straight out of the garage we know its not the right thing to do with an aeroplane.

Look at the start of the thread..... it talks about someone driving an airplane out of the hangar.

So, trying to be cool has caused piolts/flyers/aviators in the US to think they are mere drivers and its Ok to drive out of the hangar.:D
 
I know what the problem is now. Americans think its cool to call pilots drivers, why I don't know but they do.

In the UK we know that driving has nothing to do with flying so while we might drive our cars straight out of the garage we know its not the right thing to do with an aeroplane.

Look at the start of the thread..... it talks about someone driving an airplane out of the hangar.

So, trying to be cool has caused piolts/flyers/aviators in the US to think they are mere drivers and its Ok to drive out of the hangar.:D


I'm really glad to hear that I'm not the only one to cringe when hearing the term "airplane driver". Although, sometimes the term does fit.
 
Helicopter

A few years back, someone at a nearby airport attempted to fly their Robinson R22 into their Quonset type hangar open at both ends. The blades flexed up into the hangar structure (pressure differential) and destruction ensued. No injury as I recall.
 
Hey now Steve…better watch it or I'm gonna start practicing my cricket! :D

I know you're teasing, but I don't think we Yanks think driving a plane is cool. I believe the term "XYZ driver" came from military slang…at least that's the way I've heard it. For ex: "Hey Steve, what does David fly?" "Oh, he's a Viper Driver, (or Eagle Driver or Hornet Driver)". More of a nickname than a reference to actually driving a plane (well, unless you are an Aircoupe Driver, I reckon :)).

So in the RV world, it might be, "David is an RV-10 Driver". So its a reference back to something fighter-pilot like, which has a cool factor, and really has nothing to do with "driving" an airplane. But I know David is a good pilot, and though he might be a "10 Driver" (not to be confused with a Warthog Driver…ahem) I know he's not a "Plumber" (no dis to the plumbers out there).

So ends today's colloquial sidebar! ;) I still may practice my cricket…whaddya think, bowler or wicket keeper? :eek:

Cheers,
Bob

I know what the problem is now. Americans think its cool to call pilots drivers, why I don't know but they do.

In the UK we know that driving has nothing to do with flying so while we might drive our cars straight out of the garage we know its not the right thing to do with an aeroplane.

Look at the start of the thread..... it talks about someone driving an airplane out of the hangar.

So, trying to be cool has caused piolts/flyers/aviators in the US to think they are mere drivers and its Ok to drive out of the hangar.:D
 
?.... he might be a "10 Driver" (not to be confused with a Warthog Driver?ahem) I know he's not a "Plumber" (no dis to the plumbers out there).

Cheers,
Bob

Just a guess, are you on a LONG RON in a very COLD city? :)
(I was a Pipefitter in my past life)
 
Back when I bought my first airplane (Skyhawk), as a new owner I proudly finished my first oil change.

Pulled the airplane out of the hangar to run it up and leak check ... what the heck? Where did all that debris come from??!? Sheepishly shut down quickly, realizing I had pulled the plane straight out and was blowing out the hangar.

First thing I did was check to see if anyone was watching :D
 
Living on islands must change the way pilots think. Glad I am on a continent. Land of the free... (to make mistakes and pay, or benefit from the opportunity to do it my way)
 
I have the reverse story to tell. Intentionally trying to drive INTO the hangar unsuccessfully.

Late in Phase 1. Summer. Returning to the airport after being out at the perimeter of the 50 mile test zone to get out of the mountains for some decent AGL alt. There is a smallish black cloud on the far side of the airport from me. Landing appears to be a non issue. I land and before I can turn off the runway, I see the rain approaching on the runway and the bottom falls out. Raining so hard I cannot see forward. By the time I reach the hangar it is HAILING and lots of it. :eek: I am frantic to get the plane (and me) under something to protect it. My doors are wide open and it is a BIG hangar (partners RV6 is away) so I decide to try it. Well.....I do it too daintily and get the nose tire stuck in the door tracks. SO...I am stuck with the canopy right under the massive waterfall coming off the gutterless tin roof. Still hailing like heck. :mad:

There was nothing to do but shut down, get out (soaking me and everything in the cabin and panel) and grunt the plane the rest of the way into the hangar. No damage, thank goodness. What an experience. :rolleyes:
 
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Seems the willingness to do such a thing would require at least 3, perhaps more, things:

1. You don't own the hangar, and none of your stuff is in it.
2. You are not responsible for cleaning the hangar (and don't care about the person who is).
3. You don't ever want to be invited back.

I reckon if you do own it, and keep it free of everything but the plane?or are a STOL manufacturer and cleared it out for a super-cool PR demo, it might be different. (Jon, just saw your post above, and it sounds like that's the case?no dis intended)

We taxied 22 RVs into a hangar (in formation) at Nellis AFB in 2010 during Aviation Nation?now that was different! But we had USAF taxi directors?and it was a very big hangar (with doors on both sides)! We did not taxi out of it though!

Normal ops though, I won't even turn my tail at someone's hangar (or mine) with the engine running?even with the door closed. Just a courtesy thing!

Cheers,
Bob
(Chief Hangar Clean-up Engineer at my place)



No prob Bob.. I own hanger and all. and my cousin keeps it clean, he is in middle school and pay him alittle bit everyweek to keep it sweep/vaccum. you know job security for him lol. I have never had a problem doing it and don't plan to stop.
 
My hangar is 60 wide and 70 deep. You could taxi 2 RV's in fingertip formation with room to spare, and one airplane is lost in the middle. Taxi into my hangar is no problem at all.
 
Running an airplane inside a hangar is strictly prohibited by the lease agreement at our airport .... it's called out explicitly.
 
P210

At a nearby airport, I've witnessed a pilot taxi his P210 out of his hangar. We were in the hangar across the way, not far at all. I moved to the rear of my friends hangar to take cover. The cyclone he created in his hangar was impressive to say the least. In the chaos, a large blue tarp, a rope, dirt, and other hangar items were flying about. As he pulled out, he cleared the apron and remotely closed the door. I looked at my fellow pilots and thought it was the craziest thing I'd ever seen.
Now you may ask where this is leading? Well a half year later, I'm speaking with my friends and they tell me how the P210 driver was taking a flight review with a local instructor. Starting up in the hangar as he normally did, he pulled out with one small problem. As he pulled forward, he adjusted his seating. It seems the remote in his pocket activated at an inopportune time. The activated 50 foot hangar door came down on his wing. Not good for any plane.

Tony
 
We had an 8 plane T-hangar at our airport (before the tornado got it), with the typical rather open construction. We had walls between the planes, but no ceilings. The gravel floor and grass runway were a constant source of dust and dirt.

Then one day, the Champ owner in the T next to my nice shiny Rocket decided to fire up and taxi out. I told him politely, but firmly, that taxiing out of a dusty, open ceiling building wasn't going to cut it with the other 7 shiny, clean aircraft owners. He just looked at me like I had 2 heads.

After the tornado took out the hangars, guess who didn't get invited back to the new, clean concrete floors, super nice, replacement hangars? I don't know where Mr. Inconsiderate took the wreckage of his Champ, nor do I care.

'nuf said.
 
Seems like pulling out under power could lead to some nasty accidents! A car driving by or a person running by could make for an unfortunate run in.
 
When I was flying in the Arctic we always taxied the planes into the hanger and started up in the hanger and backed out. (Twin otters).
 
Different places call for different activities... sometimes different isn't better.

While working in rotary wing aviation in Africa, one of our Hughes 500 pilots was late coming back to base, arriving in the middle of a downpour that was so hard that a haze of water droplets from 'splashback' made anything below about 18 inches above the ground invisible. No way was this guy going to get out of his helicopter in the rain... so he hover taxis into the hangar. No big deal.

His plan was working well, except he forgot about the chain hoist dangling from the rafters. There were some interesting shrapnel holes made in the hangar as all five main rotor blades disintegrated.

We never saw that pilot again...
 
Running an airplane inside a hangar is strictly prohibited by the lease agreement at our airport .... it's called out explicitly.

When you own the hangar AND the airport, you get to make the rules.

Note to self-

Always own the hangar and the airport!
 
Driving a cricket ball!!

Hey now Steve?better watch it or I'm gonna start practicing my cricket! :D

I know you're teasing, but I don't think we Yanks think driving a plane is cool. I believe the term "XYZ driver" came from military slang?at least that's the way I've heard it. For ex: "Hey Steve, what does David fly?" "Oh, he's a Viper Driver, (or Eagle Driver or Hornet Driver)". More of a nickname than a reference to actually driving a plane (well, unless you are an Aircoupe Driver, I reckon :)).

So in the RV world, it might be, "David is an RV-10 Driver". So its a reference back to something fighter-pilot like, which has a cool factor, and really has nothing to do with "driving" an airplane. But I know David is a good pilot, and though he might be a "10 Driver" (not to be confused with a Warthog Driver?ahem) I know he's not a "Plumber" (no dis to the plumbers out there).

So ends today's colloquial sidebar! ;) I still may practice my cricket?whaddya think, bowler or wicket keeper? :eek:

Cheers,
Bob

Great reply Bob!!

I just love how our our countries are separated by the same language. The term driver for a pilot does make me cringe, especially when Mjr Max Moder (if thats his name ) uses it in one of his otherwise excellent aircraft shows. If you saw how a lot of people in the UK now drive you would know what I mean!!

Now Bob, as for driving a cricket ball, I think you would make a great batsman, or fielder, especially with how well you batted and fielded my ball!!

Now, Warthog drivers......... I once nearly had an Air to Air with a Warthog driver near Upper Heyford. I was under instruction doing low flying at about 500ft AGL when I noticed something fast and slow coming from my left just below me....... a Warthog. I just had time to roll about 30 degrees right ( which takes forever in a Cessna 150) and Mr Warthog driver was gone. I have always loved the look of the Warthog since that day!!
 
I have the reverse story to tell. Intentionally trying to drive INTO the hangar unsuccessfully.

Late in Phase 1. Summer. Returning to the airport after being out at the perimeter of the 50 mile test zone to get out of the mountains for some decent AGL alt. There is a smallish black cloud on the far side of the airport from me. Landing appears to be a non issue. I land and before I can turn off the runway, I see the rain approaching on the runway and the bottom falls out. Raining so hard I cannot see forward. By the time I reach the hangar it is HAILING and lots of it. :eek: I am frantic to get the plane (and me) under something to protect it. My doors are wide open and it is a BIG hangar (partners RV6 is away) so I decide to try it. Well.....I do it too daintily and get the nose tire stuck in the door tracks. SO...I am stuck with the canopy right under the massive waterfall coming off the gutterless tin roof. Still hailing like heck. :mad:

There was nothing to do but shut down, get out (soaking me and everything in the cabin and panel) and grunt the plane the rest of the way into the hangar. No damage, thank goodness. What an experience. :rolleyes:

Hey Bill.....glad nothing was damaged and all worked out ok....but PLEASE tell me there is a video on utube that I can watch....I am sure there would be some comic relief watching that dog and pony show! :D:D
 
Starting In The Hangar

I remember quite well the first time I saw an airplane start up in the hangar. Back when you could stop at the airport, make new friends, and get a ride or two, I met a guy with a Cessna 210 who was getting ready to go fly. He offered me a ride and I offered to help him pull the airplane out. He told me "No, I'm going to start in the hangar, hop in". He started the engine and began to taxi but hadn't opened the right door far enough. Bang!

I remember quite well the second time I saw an airplane start up in the hangar. It was early one morning and my new bride and I were pre-flighting a J-3 Cub to go flying one frosty morning in the Fall. A couple of guys showed up to fly a vintage Ryan SCW. They started that Warner Super Scarab radial in the hangar, closed the doors and left for coffee. About 20 minutes later, they showed back up, opened the hangar, and taxied out to go fly. No, I did not make this up. The Cub was tied outside, and we watched the whole thing while trying to clear frost from the wings.

The next time I saw someone start up in the hangar and taxi out, it was me during my first real flying job. We kept our F-4 fire-breathing jets in concrete shelters over in Europe. We started up, did our flight control checks, taxied outside for a brake and leak check, then taxied for takeoff. But the barns were designed for it, and that's what we were paid to do. Nobody ever complained!
 
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Many years ago I flew S-2 Trackers in the Canadian military. During my first year on squadron we had a surprise operational evaluation run by a bunch of prima donnas from HQ. This went on for several days, as they assessed the squadron's operational readiness. The whole thing wrapped up with a simulated call from HQ that ICBM launch had been detected, and we had a very short time to launch the aircraft before the nukes hit.

I was assigned as copilot to the squadron commander. We ran to the small, old hangar where our assigned aircraft was, expecting that the ground crew would already be pulling it outside. But there were no ground crew in sight. The hangar doors were open, so we started up in the hangar, taxied out and got airborne a few minutes before the supposed arrival time of the simulated ICBM.

The noise from those big R-1820s running in the small hangar was deafening.
 
I live on an airpark and have a 50'x50' hanger. It is on a hill, so in front of the hanger is a cement apron that is like a big ramp. Before I had anything in the hanger, I used to start it up and taxi on out. I have a remote control for the door. It made a big mess because anything that was on the ramp like grass clippings, ended up in the hanger.

The hanger is now filled with stuff and a RV-3 also so I just tow the plane up the ramp.

I still taxi it into the hanger only the first 5 feet or so. It is fun to open the door and drive right in.

Keep in mind that I have about at least 15 feet between my prop and anything when I shut her down.
 
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