DAFB Mobile Tail Enclosure

The Mobile Tail Enclosure is a moveable mini hangar that will allow Building 712 to mimic a full-in hangar for use by Dover Air Force Base’s 512th and 436th Maintenance Groups. It is a 99-foot tall by 100-foot wide structure, with its own fire suppression and electrical system, which are required for safety purposes, and features a proposed seven-ton crane. Because the enclosure only allows Building 712 to mimic a full-in hangar, the new facility must be mobile so aircraft can enter and exit the hangar. An aircraft-towing vehicle pulls the tail enclosure along tracks to allow C-5 and C-17 aircraft to nose into the hangar, then is moved to enclose the tail that is sticking out. The doors are designed to close around the tail and create an environment inside the hangar where it is safe for maintenance crews to work in inclement weather.

Landmark survey staff provided construction stakeout and a layout grading plot for the mobile tail enclosure’s maintenance hangar and complex rail system on which the moveable enclosure slides. Staff staked 208 rail points and the mobile building’s start and stop areas for construction. An as-built survey was furnished after construction was complete. Work was performed as a subconsultant to Demor Engineering, LLC.