STANTON SPORT AVIATION	STANTON AIRFIELD STANTON, MINNESOTA USA
	Where the heck is STANTON??
Ensign Hangars
FINISHED VIEWS – Stanton MN
Two Northern Edition ENSIGN hangars have been built at Stanton. The Construction views can be found HERE. The first hangar comfortably houses a DG-800 motorglider, and the second a Schweizer 1-35.	CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE
The hoist raises the one side of the hangar making access easy. The building is rock-solid as it is tightly tied to the foundation and to the slab (using heavy-duty clips). The roof is so strong that you can even walk on it.
The service door is solid and has a heavy duty locking door-knob.
Rear View
The service door is open and can be latched in the open position.
Shown with an SZD JUNIOR, the largest cord, tallest fin, and widest stab aircraft on the field. It fit!
Shown with the Brian Utley’s DG-800 motorglider. This glider is long but still fit lengthwise. Brian’s wing wheel had to be adjusted to allow a wings-level posture in order for the glider to go in cleanly.
The first 2 ENSIGNS at Stanton. OPEN
The first 2 ENSIGNS at Stanton. CLOSED
CONSTRUCTION VIEWS START-FINISH at STANTON à	CLICK HERE
Ensign Hangars
FINISHED VIEWS – Hemet, CA
These images are from Hemet-Ryan airport where the Ensign Hangar company has made its start. These steel sailplane hangars have held up extremely well in the HOT sun and routinely strong winds of Southern California. Shown here are a set of Standard 15m Ensign Hangars built on level dry ground. At Hemet, the hangar’s 3 main steel support posts use 18” deep cement footings, and then the perimeter of the building essentially rests on the local firm ground and braced with steel ground clips. In places where the ground is less firm, or where frost conditions are common, you have several options. You can build the footings deeper, use an “at-grade slab,” or provide a full frost-footing. In Minnesota, we are using an at-grade slab that the building will be bolted to. This will be extremely strong and allow the building to survive our heavy-snow load code requirements (42 pounds/sq ft) and winds up to 90 mph, plus allow tolerance for our deep frost conditions. At-grade-slabs are permitted by most building codes and are routinely used for detached garages. It is a good economical choice and could be acceptable even if the airport does not want permanent structures. The Ensign Hangar can be disassembled and relocated though to-date none have had to be.	CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE
The Ensign Hangar is a STEEL Kit that comes with all the parts other than the cement. The hangar is made up of a nose-house, a wing-house, and a tail-house. The tail-house is shown in this view that is roughly 6-feet tall, has a steel access door, and is 10-feet wide.
Designer Richard Ensign shows how they have laid a bed of crushed rock near the entrance door that provides a mud-free “patio” and keeps the interior dirt-free. The access door has a welded steel frame, is steel sided, and comes with a high quality door lock.
The steel rear-post behind the tail-house holds the longitudinal truss as well as gives support to the first winch pulley. The steel winch rope feeds through a small hole in the roof, which leads to the 12V DC winch inside the building. There is screening in the peak of the tail-house roof that keeps the building cool while also keeping out birds.
The nose-house is shown raised in this view. The door system automatically shuts off the winch when the door reaches the proper angle.
Side view of the open nose-house, as well as the wing-post that holds up the span-wise trusses. When the door is lowered, there are “stops” to prevent the door from blowing inwards in an excessively strong wind. The slope of the roof sections are suitable to shed away both rain and built-up snow. The roof steel material is of a thicker grade than the basic siding, allowing a very high roof Live-load to be supported. Please note that your winglets will need to be removed if you have them. This allows the building to use the least overall material keeping the offering price within reason.
Perspective view of a stowed 15m glider. The main wheel guide allows the glider to always be centered eliminating the possibility of hangar rash. A wing-wheel or sawhorse is used to keep the wings level while in the hangar.
A closer view. Note that the nose-house section has 2 pair of “keepers” to raise the wing door sections. This has proven to work very well and requires no additional cables.
Front view showing the glider centered in the hangar.
Empty view. At Hemet they use a treated-wood wheel guide channel laid in a bed of clean crushed rock. The rock is spread to a few inches deep to keep the dust and dirt down, and to provide a mud-free condition within the hangar. Other installations, such as in Minnesota, have a full slab set on a layer of 6-inches of crushed rock. This is a little bit more money but provides a good surface for the walls to rest upon in order to carry the heavier snow load. It also provides anchor points around the perimeter for increased strength.
Shown here is the glider aligned perfectly with the wheel-guide of the hangar. A small “dish” is provided and positioned for the main-wheel to rest in as the glider is rotated into position prior to pushing the glider back into the hangar. This dish demonstrates Richard Ensign’s attention to detail in finishing this fine kit.
Here is the dish for the Ensign Hangar located just across fro the one being demonstrated. The dish is staked into the ground just below grade to allow mowing (or shoveling!) as the case may be.
A closer view of the open hangar. Note the solar panel, also provided, that keeps the 12V battery charged. All wiring is provided.
An even closer view
A close-up view of one of the main posts. The main posts are each a steel tube with a steel flange. A concrete footing is poured in a hole 18” – 48” deep beneath these posts. On the surface of the footing are 4 vertical threaded bolts that the post is secured to, much like a street pole is, and leveled accordingly. A very solid and dependable system.
View of the raised nose-house. Note the keepers that raise the wing door sections. The panels overlap neatly to allow a good seal against blowing rain. The front of the nose-house, at ground level, has provisions for a lock in order to secure the nose-house and wing-doors more completely.
INSIDE VIEWS – Hemet, CA
This view shows the raised nose-house and the wheel track. At Hemet, they leveled the crushed rock and used surplus outdoor carpeting to provide a walking surface inside that is very solid and economical. There is plenty of room to move around in the open hangar.
The hangar also provides a good place to hang out as you wait for the weather to improve or for your turn for a tow. Some owners have installed shelving for tools and other items, and even a cot can be unfolded for overnight stays. You have already been accused of sleeping with your glider right? - so why not make it official!
Another relaxing view.
The electrical system is comprised of an operator control box inside the entry door and winch control box/battery/winch at the rear of the hangar – all provided in the kit. In addition a Solar Panel is provided and externally mounted, usually above one of the main support posts. Again, Richard Ensign has provided a very compete kit that is meant to be assembled in one week with one helper. It is a very satisfying project for any individual, club, or FBO.
Inside the rear winch control box are solenoids to control both the OPENING and CLOSING operation. High quality components are used. The Operator control box inside the entry door contains a solid-state regulator that is is used to control the solar charging operation. All wiring instructions are provided.
A view of the heavy-duty 12V winch control box, battery, and winch mounted on the rear wall.
A view of the operator control box with the voltmeter and toggle switch for controlling the door.
A view of the steel access door and locking system.
A view of the glider on its way in.
The glider in proper position.
A happy owner proud of his hangar. Note the special tail rest (build by this owner) to allow the tail dolly to come off if desired. It is also positioned such that he knows the glider is in the right position for the door to be operated.
A view into the nose-house when the door is closed.
This is a view of the switches used to measure the angle of the door in order to shut it off in the raised position or to allow it to be lowered. This is a safety feature that you will appreciate. The CLOSED DOOR position sensor is fine-tunable so that there is no slack in the winch cable when the door is closed. This extra attention to quality is remarkable for a Hangar kit.
Close-up view of the Closed-door sensor.
A close up view of a tail-rest if you care to make one for your particular glider.
So what is the kit composed of? – Primarily you will receive all the welded trusses and wall sections, siding and roofing material, all the needed fasteners, all electrical components, and even caulking material! A lot of work goes into these components and the fit is very-very good. The design has been refined over time and it is a very solid system. A detailed instruction manual (6MB) is available HERE if you would like to review the quality of the kit and see how the kit goes together. You will be impressed.
Ready to discuss more? – please contact me (Tom Rent) on the prior page and I will be more than willing to help you with how to proceed. We at Stanton Airfield have done a lot of work to ready this design for additional customers, and having me involved will not cost you a dime.
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