Original Van Nuys Airport hangar saved

Valley history buffs were aghast to learn last week that the first hangar built at what's now called Van Nuys Airport was in the process of being torn down. The hangar originally fronted the grass, east-west runway at Metropolitan Airport — which opened in 1928 — and shows up in old movies, including Casablanca. The hangar was the last surviving structure from the old airport (which now has double north-south runways.) As word spread of the hangar's threatened destruction, the owner of the Airtel Plaza Hotel stepped up and bought the facade, all that remains. He'll move it to the hotel grounds adjacent to the airport. The photo of the hangar under construction is from onesixright.com, the website for Brian J. Terwilliger's documentary on Van Nuys Airport, One Six Right. See it large.