Construction
The Bellman hangar was constructed on a unit system of rolled steel sections, both walls and roof using the same standard units joined at the junction of wall and roof by a standard corner unit. The time taken for 12 men to erect the hangar at Thornaby, including levelling the ground, laying door tracks, erecting the steelwork, and fitting oiled canvas Callender doors, was 500 man-hours. Two light jib derricks using timber poles were required to erect the fabricated and side members. The roof trusses were assembled on the ground before being lifted into position.
As a result of the bad winter of 1937 when a number of Bellman hangars at Thornaby were damaged after a heavy to severe fall of snow, production Bellmans were modified slightly to have steel-framed and steel-clad doors.
During the period 1938-40 some 400 Bellman hangars were built in the UK, some 230 others were manufactured in Australia and presumably more were produced under licence in other Commonwealth countries too. Pre-war examples are known to have been built at Brooklands (one for Hawker Aircraft Ltd was supplied by January 1939) and at Croydon Airport (one was provided there for the Air Ministry).
Bellmans proved to be invaluable in the early part of the war and met an increasing demand not only to supplement permanent hangars, but also to provide the total hangar requirements for many temporary Armament Training, Elementary Flying Training, and Air Navigation Schools.
Hangars were purchased in bulk and in 1938 a central parts, storage depot was established at No. 3 MU at Milton, Oxfordshire. The parts for 40 Bellmans were stored in two specially built Bellman sheds for issue in the event of war. When all the hangars had been dispatched, these sheds were used for storing spare parts.
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