What Are The Worst Aircraft Storage Mistakes You Can Make?

Your aircraft’s quality and long-term durability are heavily reliant on your ability to store it safely in an appropriate hangar with all of the equipment you need to inspect, maintain and repair any issues before taking it out on a flight.

Summer is the height of the personal flying season, with bright sunny days, slower wind speeds and less risk of sudden downpours catching a trainee pilot by surprise.

Airlines have dedicated processes for storing their jetliners and ensuring they are flawless before they are allowed to fly again, and a similar set of safety precautions should be kept in mind for your personal aircraft.

With that in mind, here are some of the worst aircraft storage mistakes we have heard of and how you can avoid them.

Do You Have Enough Space For Your Aircraft?

If you have multiple planes or are currently leasing space in a hangar, you could be risking your plane, as overcrowding and limited access to the space available are significant issues that could cause concerns for your plane once you take it out of storage.

Shared spaces force you to cede a considerable amount of control over your plane’s condition and require both trust and significant inspection of the plane to ensure its airworthiness.

A simple solution to this is to invest in additional space; kit-build hangars are available which give your plane a dedicated space to call its own at an affordable cost.

Is Your Hangar The Right Size?

Your hangar needs to not only be the right size for the wingspan of your plane but also leave you with enough room to store your workshop, your maintenance equipment and grow around your needs as a pilot.

A hangar that is too small saves you pennies that cost you pounds in the long run, so it is best to opt for a hangar that can be part of a long-term airfield, unless you only need a temporary storage space for aircraft for a short-term event.

Does Your Hangar Provide The Right Climate For Your Aircraft?

Aircraft are remarkably sensitive to changes in humidity whilst in flight, but this also translates to short-term and long-term storage as well.

If the temperature and humidity are not controlled through appropriate ventilation and the use of dehumidifiers, moisture can build up in some of the components, which leads to corrosion and operational failures.

Most of these can be spotted and fixed during pre-flight checks, but the less your aircraft is exposed to humid conditions, the longer it will last, the easier it will be to inspect, and your overall enjoyment of flying will be significantly improved.

Does Your Hangar Provide The Right Level Of Security?

Your hangar needs to be robust, strong and reinforced in order to stop opportunistic thieves from trying to burgle your high-value aircraft.

Alongside these, you should also consider installing security cameras, instituting an access control system using smart locks and fitting an alarm that will quickly alert you and the police if there is a serious attempt on your plane.