Execujet Hanger in Wellington – Roof Lift

Dignitaries arriving in the capital in their private jets are a step closer to having their own aircraft hangar after a 215-tonne steel roof was hauled into place yesterday.

It took workers three hours to set up the six cranes used to winch the flexible steel roof on to 15-metre-high steel supports – but just 30 minutes for the cranes to complete the lift. I was invited along to document the lift for the companies involved with the project.

Wellington International Airport’s new multi-use hangar is scheduled to open in September in time to accommodate the expected increase in demand during the Rugby World Cup, as the rich and famous jet into town.

Sir Peter Jackson’s top-of-the-line $68 million jet, a Gulfstream G550, has been parked in Melbourne because of a lack of suitable hangar space at Wellington Airport.

Edit: Peter Jackson has sold his G550 & now has his top-of-the-line G650 parked here.

It is set to return to the capital once the 2000-square-metre hangar opens on the Kilbirnie side of the airport that was previously occupied by the Wellington Aero Club.

I was commissioned by the project managers, Impact Project Management, to capture the 215-tonne being lifed into place.