There is a widespread problem facing general aviation pilots and airports across North America. Hangar space, or rather, the lack of it. When father and son duo Kenny and Jack Hinkes needed a hangar for their new Cessna Skyhawk, they soon realized that their local airport, the Double Eagle II Airport, was no exception. With a years-long waiting list, the odds of ever getting into a hangar were slim to none.
Seizing the Opportunity
The news was disappointing, but the Hinkeses saw it as an opportunity. With decades of real estate development experience, it did not take long for an idea to take flight.
The idea? To develop quality aircraft hangars in Alburquerque, New Mexico, helping to fill a growing need for hangar space for general aviation aircraft.
High Flying Hangars is a “business of passion and pride in what we do,” says Jack. That passion is important, as there is a certain dedication required to finish a project of this magnitude.
There’s No One Better Qualified
There is no one better qualified for a project like this. It is a combination of business experience, firsthand knowledge of the general aviation community, and a determination to see a project done well.
A Lifetime Spent in Flight
With 54 years of flying under his wings, Kenny Hinkes has fond memories of his father taking him to the airport in the 1950’s as a small child.
He paints a vivid picture of the scene –rattling engines and propellers, oil leaking and smoking, and planes taking off for flight. “I’ve always been fascinated by anything heavy getting up into the air,” he says, fond remembrance tangled with his words.
For Jack, though it was not until 2019 that he finally had the opportunity to pursue a pilot’s license of his own, he’d spent a childhood in the cockpit and at the airport. His knowledge of the life of a pilot runs just as deep as his father’s.
Years of Development Experience
Kenny Hinkes started in the real estate business in the 1980s, developing commercial and residential properties. Since then, family-operated Center Street Realty LLC has developed, managed, and sold everything from shopping malls, to condominiums, and private homes.
Airport Hangar Development a Calculated Risk
It was this range of knowledge that made stepping into airport hangar development a calculated risk. However, they soon found out that hangar development was more complicated than expected.
Working with the local government and airport officials took three years of meetings, negotiations, paperwork, and approvals before High Flying Hangars officially broke ground on August 31, 2023.
A Closer Look at the Project
Kenny and Jack don’t do anything by halves. They launched High Flying Hangars with the goal of building 46 hangars at the Double Eagle II Airport, breaking the development into several phases of building.
Phase One includes 10 hangars, each 60 feet wide by 50 feet deep. Phase Two is scheduled to begin in late fall and includes 14 hangars in various sizes, with future phases to follow.
For High Flying Hangars, quality is at the heart of what they do. “[We want to] build a hangar we’d build for ourselves,” says Jack. They took a close look at the existing facilities at the airport, compared that to their own hangar dreams, and drew up hangar plans that would fill the gap.
High Quality Hangars
They quickly realized that with a few simple changes, they could improve the convenience and comfort of their hangars, making the airport a welcoming place for pilots and their families to spend a day.
With that in mind, Kenny and Jack included features like three-piece bathrooms, running water and floor drains in each hangar to wash aircrafts, individualized electrical panels for future upgrades, and ceiling heights between 20 and 29 feet to allow hangar owners to install mezzanines as desired.
It is a great mix of convenience and flexibility, but when asked which hangar feature the Hinkeses are most excited about, Kenny and Jack are quick to agree it’s the Diamond bifold door.
Custom Doors for the Project
High Flying Hangars ordered ten doors for the first phase of their development project. Standing at fourteen feet tall and varying between 58 and 59 feet in width, each door is equipped with the features and options that make a Diamond door unique, a result of the Hinkeses’ thorough research.
A Simple Introduction
Visiting Oshkosh EAA Airventure had been a family event for many years, but when Kenny and Jack first started dreaming about hangars, it took on a new importance.
“We started looking at all the vendors,” says Kenny. They visited multiple door companies over the next several years as the project gained momentum. Nevertheless, they found themselves returning to the Diamond Doors booth every year.
Jack shared about his experience visiting the booth and asking questions about the bifold doors. “The Sudermans [the owners of Diamond Doors] were always lovely and willing to answer questions,” he says. Jack also added that, “everything about the Diamond door made sense to us.”
Diamond Doors – Over 25 Years of Quality
Diamond Doors is a family-owned and operated bifold door manufacturing company, based in Winkler, Manitoba. Founded in 1998 by Dick Suderman, they have manufactured quality bifold doors for the aviation, agricultural, and industrial industries for over 25 years.
Like the Hinkes, the Sudermans have a rich background in aviation. Dick Suderman was a professional pilot, flying for a local aerial application company before moving into manufacturing. His sons, who now run the company, are also pilots.
Diamond Doors has a strong commitment to quality, innovation, and convenience, just like High Flying Hangars. It is these shared values that make the two companies a remarkable team.
A Remarkable Team
“[Working with Diamond Doors] is one of the best decisions that we made,” says Jack.
He explained that Diamond Doors took time to examine the building drawings that High Flying Hangars had received from their building engineers. They checked for fitment and ensured the hangars would safely withstand the loads of the door.
This made the experience a comfortable one, knowing that Diamond Doors went through every aspect of the project in detail.
Likewise, Diamond Doors had nothing but good things to say about working with High Flying Hangars.
“From the day discussions happened at the show, to putting together the initial quote, going through the process of designing the door to fit the building, and discussing the options on the doors, it was seamless,” says Peter Doerksen, sales manager and head of the project at Diamond Doors. “It was a real pleasure to work with both Kenny and Jack from the start.”
Convenient and Innovative Door Features
The Hinkes were eager to share their experience not only working with Diamond Doors, but with the door itself. Jack highlighted several door features that he had especially appreciated, including the autolock and remote opener system, the polycarbonate sheeting option, and the easy-install design.
The Autolock
The Diamond Doors autolock is noted in the bifold door industry for its simplistic and innovative design. It offers unmatched convenience as the bifold door can be operated with the push of a single button. This was an attractive feature to Kenny and Jack Hinkes , who wanted to emphasize convenience and quality in their hangars. With that in mind, they added the remote openers to the package. This means that hangar owners can operate their door just like their residential garage door at home.
Polycarbonate Sheeting
Diamond Doors offers polycarbonate sheeting as a custom finishing option. It allows in plenty of natural light, creating a welcoming atmosphere for pilots spending a quiet afternoon in their hangar.
To combat the hot New Mexico sun, the Hinkes ordered the 30mm Therma Vu polycarbonate sheeting. This provides a standard U-value of 1.3, similar to the U-value of many double pane windows.
Easy Install Design
When the doors arrived on site in late March, Jack Hinkes was pleased to see how quick and simple it was to install them.
Dick Suderman founded Diamond Doors with the firm belief that bifold doors should be simple to install. With no special equipment required, customers should be able to install the doors without too much fuss. More than 25 years later, that belief still holds.
Each door arrives at the building site ready for installation, a stark contrast to other door brands that may require the door frame to be bolted together before being hung. Diamond Doors are shipped preassembled in an “A” frame and can be hung in place almost immediately*.
Learn more about our easy install design in our recent post Bifold Door Installation – 5 Ways We Make it Easy.
The Future of High Flying Hangars
The Hinkeses don’t plan to stop at just a few hangars. With these 10 hangars underway, and High Flying Hangars poised to start the next 14 hangars, they’re already looking forward to the next hangar build. Passionate about preserving the future of general aviation, they hope to see High Flying Hangars developments at airports across the United States – and a Diamond door on every one.
You can follow their progress at http://www.kaeghangars.com.
