Oregon’s Massive WWII Blimp Hangar Sold for $1. Now It’s Reopening
After a bout of devastating storm damage — followed by a Hail Mary sale for just $1 — Tillamook’s massive World War II-era blimp hangar will reopen after all.
As will the Tillamook Air Museum, which is housed inside the historic hangar. The institution closed indefinitely in December 2025 after a winter windstorm ripped a 200-foot-long hole into the roof of Hangar B, exposing the wooden structure to rain, sun and all elements in between.
Sean O’Brien of Utah-based Vintage Aviation Museum came to the rescue in August, agreeing to buy the hangar for just $1, then repair it.
That last-ditch deal closed recently, and the museum will reopen by the end of the month.
“We are honored to reopen the Tillamook Air Museum and preserve its extraordinary aviation history for future generations,” O’Brien said in a Thursday news release, “while working to bring this historic landmark back to life for the community and visitors from around the world.”
After an almost 10-month closure, the Tillamook Air Museum — which debuted in the early 1990s inside the belly of a then-five-decade-old blimp hangar — will officially reopen Oct. 29.
O’Brien, president of Utah nonprofit Vintage Aviation Museum, grew up in Oregon, previously lived in Tillamook and once volunteered at the Oregon coast museum. As a former resident and general contractor, he said he felt drawn to try to save the historic structure.
He ultimately purchased Hangar B for just $1 and the remainder of Tillamook Air Museum assets for $20, O’Brien confirmed to The Oregonian/OregonLive on Friday.
O’Brien plans to begin working on the roof as soon as the damaged metal roof flap is removed, he said, a task the Port of Tillamook Bay contracted a Seattle-based company to take on. He expects repairs will be completed either by the end of the year or early January.
Though port officials were previously told roof repairs could cost between $2.5 million and $6.5 million, O’Brien estimates the project will not cost more than $450,000, he said.
The structure is one of two massive wooden blimp hangars constructed by the U.S. Navy in Tillamook in 1943, built as a home for K-class airships tasked with patrolling the West Coast during World War II. Constructed almost entirely from Oregon-harvested Douglas fir, the twin hangars were once majestic feats of wartime engineering.
Hangar A burned to the ground in 1992, leaving Hangar B — large enough to hold six football fields at 175 feet tall, 1,072 feet long and nearly 300 feet wide — as the last man standing.
Restoring and preserving the iconic World War II hangar is a long-term commitment, O’Brien said, and he intends to tackle the process in stages.
Addressing the storm-damaged roof is the priority, he said, but the team also plans to restore the building itself — as well as expand the museum’s aircraft selection, grow its event calendar and add new exhibits, interactive displays and flight simulators.
“Our goal is to not only preserve this remarkable piece of aviation history but also enhance the overall visitor experience,” O’Brien wrote, “giving visitors new reasons to return time and time again.”
The Tillamook Air Museum, housed inside historic blimp Hangar B at 6030 Hangar Road, will reopen to the public Thursday, Oct. 29. It will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for its grand opening.
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