Aviation museums

[Cossie]

Not only planes just about everything, can’t beat Speyer and Sinsheim imo.

Technik Museen Sinsheim Speyer | Europe’s largest private museums

Join us on an adventure: become a pilot, racing driver or astronaut, experience technology #forfansbyfans & take off with us ► We look forward to seeing you!

speyer.technik-museum.de

Technik Museen Sinsheim Speyer | Europe’s largest private museums

Join us on an adventure: become a pilot, racing driver or astronaut, experience technology #forfansbyfans & take off with us ► We look forward to seeing you!

sinsheim.technik-museum.de

Been to lot’s of former Soviet/DDR bases in the former East Germany, including bunkers and airfields. Not so keen on the Soviets/russians at the moment though.

Luftfahrttechnischer Museumsverein Rothenburg e.V. just north of Goerlitz

Luftfahrt in Brandenburg north of Berlin

Flugplatzmuseum Cottbus e.V. near Cottbus

This was one of the first we went to, a lot of history here, Altes Lager,

Aktuelles

www.hl-barbara.de

 

[Mattg]

The Qantas Founders Museum in Longreach is excellent.

For something a bit left-field (and not specifically aviation related), the transport museum in Lucerne, Switzerland is superb.

 

[kookaburra75]

I have a soft spot for the Shuttleworth Collection, at Old Warden in the UK, as virtually all of the aircraft are kept in flying condition. You can smell the oil as you walk through the hangers.
A few times a year they have the big shows which are worth going to.

The Shuttleworth Collection

Museums have curators, we have engineers. Explore our unique world-class Collection of some of the oldest airworthy historic aircraft in the world, as well as our veteran vehicle fleet, heritage steam exhibits and more.

www.shuttleworth.org

 

[Cossie]

Forgot a couple, National Museum of Flight near Edinburgh.

National Museum of Flight | East Lothian, Scotland

Wing your way to one of Scotland's best days out this year at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

www.nms.ac.uk

Blooklands. Brooklands Museum

 

[Mwenenzi]

Museum of flight in Seattle

Visited this in 2016, when was it located at Paine Field in Mukilteo, Washington. Small, but had some very interesting flying aircraft when I visited, including a flying B25 & T6-Harvard. Now at Spokane WA.

Historic Flight Foundation | Vintage Aircraft Museum | Washington

Historic Flight Foundation is a unique vintage aircraft museum located in Spokane, WA, established in the year 2003. Contact us to learn more.

historicflight.org

Historic Flight Foundation - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Near Boeing Everett on Paine Field near Seattle.

Aircraft Restoration | The Museum of Flight

The Museum of Flight's Restoration Center & Reserve Collection at Paine Field is a 23,000-square-foot site where thousands of volunteer hours are devoted to renovating and restoring aircraft to exhibition quality.

www.museumofflight.org

Looks to be closed

Also at Paine Field, but now sold-closed. Was owned by the late Paul Allen (Microsoft)

Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum | Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum

Experience a one-of-a-kind collection of military aircraft, vehicles, and artifacts used in various wars of the 20th century. The collection has been restored with unparalleled authenticity to share with the public. Many of the aircraft and vehicles are maintained in such good condition they’re...

flyingheritage.org

But my favourite would be USAF National Museum in Dayton, Ohio.

 

[NM]

So its clear there are lots of good flight museums, but if you had to choose your favourite, which ONE wins?

 

[camperdown9]

A few years ago we visited Seattle mainly because I wanted to visit Boeing's factory. We booked a tour from Seattle and I was a little disappointed.

We then decided to go and visit the Museum of Flight south of Seattle. There is a regular bus that goes from downtown Seattle and has a stop just across the road from the museum. (It was a bit of an experience people talking to themselves and bottles rolling around the floor. But hay thats public transport in the USA.) The museum itself was great. If we go back to that part of the world we will visit it again.

I have been to Duxford but that was years ago, so can't really comment.

Alex

 

[Cossie]

Speyer or Sinsheim! Both are sort of one museum, just separated by about 30km.

 

[TonyDoh]

For me, it is definitely the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, specifically the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. I'm thinking of the SR71, the Concorde, and so much more, topped off by the Enola Gay, and the space shuttle Discovery. This is especially when you can walk right up to the Discovery and read the small print on each of the individual tiles of the skin.

 

[TheRealTMA]

Museum of Flight in Seattle (SR71, Space capsules, Shuttle, Redstone rocket etc) and the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in the McMinnville, Oregon. (Spruce Goose etc)

Home | The Museum of Flight

The Museum of Flight holds one of the largest air and space collections in the US and aims to become the foremost educational air and space museum in the world!

www.museumofflight.org

Home - Evergreen Museum

Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum is the home of the iconic Hughes Flying Boat - The Spruce Goose. In addition to an SR-71, A-10, and more.

www.evergreenmuseum.org

 

[ausfox]

For me, it is definitely the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, specifically the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. I'm thinking of the SR71, the Concorde, and so much more, topped off by the Enola Gay, and the space shuttle Discovery. This is especially when you can walk right up to the Discovery and read the small print on each of the individual tiles of the skin.

+1 for Udvar Hazy Center. A part of the Smithsonian built by a number of donations from a successful secondary airline operator. I leave it to you to guess the name of the benefactor. In the USA there are significant tax advantages for donations. I wish that this was the case for other than “the arts” here in Australia.

 

[Denali]

We went to Boeing in Seattle, that was fun, especially watching the just out of the hanger new planes being tested.

Almost made it to Manchester to see the Concord but then Covid hit so maybe 2024.

 

[newmarket]

It’s got to be the US Air Force museum in Dayton.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

for an unofficial museum: https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-advice/flights/mystery-inside-bangkoks-creepy-aeroplane-boneyard/news-story/b068441d26443680e63541424fd0a793?utm_source=SEM&utm_medium=PPC_SEM&utm_campaign={campaign}&gclid=CjwKCAjw2OiaBhBSEiwAh2ZSP4b9Uj6Ug1ixz7QFFcIDTy8MZ0_LayypGiWWgvZbG0onaLpWBegr6hoCG9kQAvD_BwE

Heaps of fun, and a little scary. It’s possible to climb out the coughpit roof exit and sit right on top of the 747. No safety nets or barriers

 

[dajop]

For something a bit left-field (and not specifically aviation related), the transport museum in Lucerne, Switzerland is superb.

On those lines, I also found the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn, giving a history of the subway in NYC, really interesting. I guess these are "travel" or transport related - just not flight related). But no aviation related content at this particular NY museum.

 

[justinbrett]

For me, it is definitely the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, specifically the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. I'm thinking of the SR71, the Concorde, and so much more, topped off by the Enola Gay, and the space shuttle Discovery. This is especially when you can walk right up to the Discovery and read the small print on each of the individual tiles of the skin.

It’s got to be the US Air Force museum in Dayton.

I've done both, and USAF Museum beats the pants off the Udvar-Hazy Center. They are both very good, but the USAF Museum is at least 4x the size and has way more aircraft, and so many rare aircraft (ie, the Valkyrie and the B-2 spirit). It has the Bockscar, the sister aircraft of the Enola Gay that dropped the other bomb.

In an ideal world see both - but if you can only see one - it's got to be the USAF Museum.

 

[oznflfan]

Indonesian Air Force Museum in Yogyakarta is good.

Will visit USAF Museum in Dayton one year.

 

[kpc]

For me, it is definitely the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, specifically the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. I'm thinking of the SR71, the Concorde, and so much more, topped off by the Enola Gay, and the space shuttle Discovery. This is especially when you can walk right up to the Discovery and read the small print on each of the individual tiles of the skin.

I love this museum....even +1 who is not into planes liked this museum!

 

[Stanley Lambchop]

I grew up very close to RAF Cosford in the UK, so always have a soft spot for that one

 

[camperdown9]

On those lines, I also found the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn, giving a history of the subway in NYC, really interesting. I guess these are "travel" or transport related - just not flight related). But no aviation related content at this particular NY museum.

Great museum. They from time to time do virtual tours for those of us who can't get to New York as often as we would like.

London Transport Museum in Covent Garden is also worth a visit...but London Transport Museum have a storage place near Acton. Its open for guided tours a few days per month. The guides seem to have a certain amount of freedom as to what they want to talk about. On one occasion the guide we had was a bus enthusiast so we pretty much just looked at old buses. An other time the guide was interested in old underground stock so talked mainly about trains. The Acton depot also holds LTM's collection of small items, posters, railway signs etc and you can go on a tour that just looks at those.

The Acton depot also has open weekends a few times a year, however due to health and safety some areas of the depot are closed. (If you are interested in the history of the London underground then I would recommend "Hidden London Hangouts" on YouTube)

Alex