Air New Zealand Hangar 4 is a 16,500 square metre aircraft maintenance facility in Māngere that expands the airline’s Auckland base and sets a new benchmark for sustainable aviation infrastructure. The building combines a 10,500-square-metre, clear-span hangar with 5000-square-metres of workshops and maintenance spaces, allowing simultaneous maintenance of one Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and two Airbus A320/A321 aircraft.

A single sweeping mass timber arch structure and ETFE roof create a luminous, uncluttered volume that supports efficient aircraft movement and safe, ordered workflows for engineers. The lightweight LVL and CLT frame reduces foundations and improves seismic and coastal performance while expressing a distinctly New Zealand material character.

Hangar 4 has achieved a 6 Green Star Design rating from the New Zealand Green Building Council and is targeting a 6 Green Star As-Built rating, currently being assessed. The project integrates with the existing hangar network, expanded hardstand and live airside operations, strengthening Air New Zealand’s long-term maintenance capacity while showing how large-scale infrastructure can align operational performance, worker wellbeing and low-carbon design.

Photography: Air New Zealand, Studio Pacific Architecture, NZ Strong