American opens a new hangar at Chicago O’Hare

Global architecture and engineering firm Ghafari Associates is excited to announce the completion of American Airlines’ Hangar 2 at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, the longest clear span, dual threshold airline hangar in the world.

The new facility was unveiled at a grand opening celebration on January 25 attended by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Ghafari team members, and over 200 officials, customers, employees, partners, and vendors.

Ghafari provided architecture and engineering services for the development of the 194,000 SF dual-entry facility, which can accommodate all aircraft variants in American’s fleet, including narrow-body and wide-body types. The facility also houses ancillary support functions, including a general back shop, a component staging area, and storage spaces.

Unique to the hangar is dual access entry, allowing aircraft to enter and exit from either side of the long dimension. Coupled with a larger capacity for aircraft hardstand positions, this feature offers greater flexibility in servicing American’s extensive fleet of aircraft. The facility is also designed with over 20,000 linear feet of underground utilities, providing point-of-use aircraft services for safer, more effective, and timesaving operations. Additional key features of the design include the use of LED lighting and daylight harvesting, which will reduce energy costs while meeting the Sustainable Airport Manual requirements.