Heritage Flight Week, Day 2

A Green Roof, best viewed from above

For a facility that is located at a major airport, the view of the building from the sky is often appreciated just as much as the view from the ground.  Passengers flying with Heritage Flight, as well as those travelling on commercial airlines out of Burlington Airport, have a clear view of the roof of Heritage Aviation.  And this roof is very “green”, in more ways than one.

The roof is home to a 10-panel 65.2 MBtu solar thermal domestic hot water system and an adjacent 120-panel 25.2 kW solar photovoltaic array.  The upper roof of the main hangar is finished with a highly reflective white membrane that reduces solar heat gain.  But the most striking surface on the top of the building wraps around 3 sides of the upper roof.  This lower level features a 13,742 sq.ft. "green" roof, with several varieties of sedum covering the surface of the building like a lush canvas.  The colorful plantings are arranged in a waving pattern and can be seen from the rooftop observation deck or from the air as you fly overhead.

The vegetated roof retains the first 1" of rainfall that falls on it, with the excess directed toward underground irrigation tanks.  When installed, this was the largest green roof in New England, and it remains today the largest in Vermont.