Alaska Breaks Ground on New Hangar

The facility will allow maintenance technicians to work on up to three narrowbody aircraft or two widebody aircraft at a time.

Alaska 737-900 without winglets
An Alaska 737-900. (Photo: Shutterstock | Wenjie Zheng)
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

Alaska Airlines is expanding its maintenance capabilities at a hub in the Pacific Northwest.

The carrier on Tuesday marked the ceremonial groundbreaking of a new, $135 million maintenance hangar at Portland International Airport in Oregon.

Once permits are approved, the facility will be constructed adjacent to Alaska’s existing Horizon Air operations and maintenance center, adding about 125,000 square feet of space for indoor aircraft work and 60,000 square feet for offices, engine, machine, and sheet metal shops, and support areas.

The hangar will service Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines’ mainline fleets, officials said.

With the added capacity, technicians will be able to work on up to three narrowbody aircraft or two widebody aircraft at one time, quickening turnaround and relieving Alaska’s primary maintenance facilities in Seattle and other hubs.

A rendering of the planned hangar at Portland. (Credit: Alaska Airlines)

“A new maintenance hangar in Portland is both an investment in one of our critical hubs and a key that unlocks growth possibilities throughout our network,” Benjamin Brookman, Alaska’s vice president of real estate and airport affairs, said in a news release. “With more flexibility on where we can perform maintenance and the aircraft we can service, we can run our operation more efficiently.”

Construction is expected to wrap up in the second quarter of 2028.

Zach Vasile

Zach Vasile is a writer and editor covering news in all aspects of commercial aviation. He has reported for and contributed to the Manchester Journal Inquirer, the Hartford Business Journal, the Charlotte Observer, and the Washington Examiner, with his area of focus being the intersection of business and government policy.
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