Paris Air and Space Museum
Provided by: Mike Huddson
Musee de l’Air et de l’Espace, or the Paris Air and Space Museum in English, is one of the world’s oldest and greatest aviation museums, containing some of the best collections of artifacts and aircrafts to be found.
The museum is located at Le Bourget Airport, one of the oldest in France and best known as the runway where Charles Lindburgh landed his Spirit of Saint Louis after crossing the Atlantic in 1927.
This magnificent museum runs over 150,000 square feet of land, incorporating hangars and buildings and containing nearly 20,000 items.
More than 150 aircraft are on display.
The museum is state run and falls under the responsibility of the French Ministry of Defense, with two main objectives: To preserve and enrich collections pertaining to aeronautics and space, and to preserve the importance of le Bourget airport.
There is plenty to see at the museum, which pays tribute man’s dream to fly and his amazing achievements over time.
Visitors can view a chronological exhibition in the 200 m long terminal, which will teach them about everything from man’s first balloon ride up to 1918. What makes this collection so good is the fact that the majority of artifacts are genuine.
The best collection, however, is undoubtedly the one that presents World War I aviation history. This great selection of planes includes interactive exhibitions, showing planes from all air powers and bringing to life the glory of this period in aviation history.
Other galleries in the museum include those devoted to French aircraft designs between the first and second world wars, aircraft created by combatant powers and prototypes developed in France since the end of WWII. The museum also takes a look at the role of the French Air Force during the Cold War.
The Concorde exhibition hall allows players to board a Concorde 001 or Concorde Sierre Delta to truly experience the size of this supersonic aircraft.
A planetarium serves the public and runs regular exhibitions, workshops and talks about the wonders of space.
The Paris Air and Space Museum is open Tuesdays to Sundays. From April 1st to September 30, its opening hours are 10h00 to 18h00, while from October 1st to March 31st, the museum closes one hour earlier, at 17h00. The museum is closed every Monday, as well as December 25th and January 1st. Prices for tickets vary, depending on which exhibits visitors would like to see.
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