INSPIRE DREAMS OF FLIGHT

At The Hangar Flight Museum we use Our Compass to direct our choices and our future. 

• We are inspired by bold and adventurous stories
• We are passionate about bringing aviation history to life
• We work in service to our communities
• We are adaptable and agile, embracing quality, professionalism, and courage in our work

The work we do is supported by people just like you. Our ability to preserve artifacts and stories of aviation history, provide fun and exceptional educational programming, and keep aviation history alive for future generations is dependent upon your support. 

By visiting the museum, signing up for a membership, or donating directly to our cause you are helping us preserve and educate. 

A few of our current projects that are supported directly through your donations are: Building Maintenance and Restoration, Operations, Aircraft Maintenance and Restoration, and Expansion. 

TRUSS STRENGTHENING 2023-2025:

The historic building that The Hangar Flight Museum calls home was built in 1941. To keep the wooden truss system in our roof strong and healthy it requires constant maintenance. The strengthening scheduled for 2023-2025 requires an estimated $240,000 more to be raised to complete these stages of construction work through 2024 and 2025. This supplements additional funding sources. Your donation today toward our truss strengthening will inspire the next generation with dreams of flight! 

Supporting our roof is a direct way of supporting The Hangar's present and future while preserving its past. This will be continual work that will be needed as we are housed within a historical structure that was not originally built with longevity in mind.

Thank you to the City of Calgary for supporting current and future truss repair and strengthening construction work as part of their commitment to The Hangar Flight Museum. We are also very grateful to our individual donors who have supported this project.

DONATE TODAY: CHOOSE BUILDING MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENTS FUND for your donation to be put directly toward this project. 

MUSEUM EXPANSION

The next phase of upgrades to the visitor experience at The Hangar Flight Museum is replacing the Tent Hangar with a more permanent structure. We have worked with the City of Calgary and YYC Airport Authority and other partners to discuss the future and completed a Feasibility Study in September 2022. We are very grateful to the City of Calgary and Calgary Foundation for supporting this integral project. 

This fundraising campaign will be a long-term project, beginning now. Large-scale projects, such as a museum expansion that will triple the size of our current Tent Hangar, require support of all levels. Every donation gets us closer to being a premiere destination to explore, engage, and experience the transformational power of flight.  

Creating a larger building will give us the opportunity to protect more artifacts than we currently have space to house, including Calgary's deHavilland Mosquito, which is currently out for restoration in Nanton, AB. It will ensure that our artifacts are protected from seasonal temperature changes, as our current Tent Hangar is not heated. This will also have a significant effect on the visitor experience, and make The Hangar enjoyable even on the coldest day. It will give us the capacity to upgrade our exhibits, make them more engaging with the opportunity for multimedia and hands-on learning opportunities, in ways that are not currently possible in an outdoor structure. 

Choose the New Facility Expansion Fund for your donation to go directly toward this project. 

SIKORSKY S-55 HORSE CONSERVATION 

Our most recent aircraft restoration project was the Sikorsky Horse helicopter repainting. This repainting occurred during summer 2022. You can now see the conserved helicopter right at our front entrance! 

This specific S-55 serial # 55822 arrived at The Hangar in 1990 from Buffalo Airways, which means it has now been outdoors on site for 32 years. It is time for this helicopter to receive some care and attention with a fresh coat of paint. Sunshine, rain, and snow are hard on painted metal and regular maintenance is required to keep the structural integrity of the metal. 

The S-55 was a significant step from previous helicopters made by Sikorsky. Its piston engine was located in a unique spot, and it incorporated offset hinges in its main rotor head. The engine placement gave this helicopter plenty of transportation space for passengers or cargo. 

Our final 50/50 Cash Raffle to support this project ended on May 16, 2022. The winning ticket number was 1140. Thank you to all of our supporters who have given us the ability to complete this conservation project. 

Support our fall projects at The Hangar Flight Museum! Which projects are happening this fall?

The tent hangar is finally being repaired, and building accessibility improvements are set to begin soon. This fall we will also be completing another round of truss repairs to keep our historic building healthy and strong. The stolen bronze plaques from our property are also ready to be replaced with aluminum pieces that will be less likely to be stolen again. This will keep the integrity of their purpose, and the plaques are still easy to read with raised letters, but are made with a less intrinsically valuable material. The tin toy plane sculptures from the Calgary International Airport have also arrived at The Hangar and are on display on the mezzanine level.

Whew, we did say that we’ve been busy, and will continue to be busy as these projects are completed. We can’t forget to mention the progress that has been made with new exhibit design as well. Take a trip to The Hangar and come see our new exhibits on the Canadian effort in the space industry, Canadian airshow teams, and a full listing of all of Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame inductees. These three exhibits were created in partnership with CAHF – we’re so pleased to be their home, and having some of their artifacts on display helps us to jointly tell the story of aviation heritage in Canada.

As you may be able to tell, having this many projects on the go, all in the same season, requires us to have dedicated funding sources and support from our community – aviation and history enthusiasts. We’re very grateful to have your support as we stretch to meet our goals and become a premiere destination to explore, engage, and experience the transformational power of flight. We are inspired by bold and adventurous stories, we are passionate about bringing aviation history to life, and we work in service to our communities. We do all of this only with the help of supporters just like you! Please share this campaign with your networks to help us reach our goals and complete all of our fall projects. Thank you for your participation in our growth – because of you, we’re flying – never falling!

The 50/50 Raffle finished on November 5, with the winning ticket drawn on November 6. The winning ticket number is D-2128. Thank you to everyone who supported this fundraising effort.