United Kingdom

London

Science Museum

Exhibition Road, London, SW7 2DD, England
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/spitfire/
The Science Museum has revealed plans for ‘Inside the Spitfire: Personal stories of Britain's most famous plane’. The new exhibition on the legendary Spitfire and its designer R J Mitchell is open from 15th August 2005 to mark the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

Imperial war museum, London

Imperial War Museum, Lambeth Road, London, SE1 6HZ, England
www.iwm.org.uk
The Imperial War Museum is unique in its coverage of conflicts, especially those involving Britain and the Commonwealth, from the First World War to the present day. It seeks to provide for, and to encourage, the study and understanding of the history of modern war and ‘war-time experience’. It is proud to be regarded as one of the essential sights of London.

Royal Air Force Museum, London

Royal Air Force Museum, Grahame Park Way, Hendon, London, NW9 5LL, England
www.rafmuseum.org/london
From a total collection of well over two hundred aircraft, over a hundred full-size aircraft from all over the world are displayed under cover on the historic site of the original London Aerodrome. These include the legendary Spitfire and Lancaster Bomber.

South East

Museum of Army Flying/Explorers' World

Middle Wallop, Stockbridge, SO20 8DY, Hampshire, England
www.flying-museum.org.uk
Celebrating over one hundred years of army aviation, this award-winning museum is home to one of the country’s finest historical collections of military kites, gliders, aeroplanes and helicopters. There are over 35 helicopters and fixed wing aircraft to see at the museum including the largest collection of military gliders in Europe.
The Museum’s imaginative dioramas and static displays trace the developments of Army flying from pre Royal Flying Corps years through World War II to more recent conflicts in Ireland, the Falklands and the Gulf.

Museum of Berkshire Aviation

Mohawk Way (off The Bader Way), Woodley, Nr. Reading, RG5 4UE, Berkshire, England
fly.to/MuseumofBerkshireAviation
Berkshire's dynamic contribution to aviation history is graphically re-captured at the museum. Run as a charitable trust, the museum is at the historic site of Woodley Airfield, near Reading, U.K. - once the centre of a thriving aircraft industry. Miles and Handley Page aircraft built at Woodley are being re-constructed and exhibited along with fascinating pictorial records and priceless archives.

Tangmere Military Aviation Museum Trust

Tangmere, Chichester, PO20 2ES, West Sussex, England
www.tangmere-museum.org.uk
The Museum was opened in 1982 with exhibits depicting 70 years of military aviation in Sussex, with special emphasis on the RAF at Tangmere and the air war over southern England from 1939 to 1945.

Kent Battle of Britain Museum

Kent Battle of Britain Museum, Aerodrome Road, Hawkinge, Folkestone, CT18 7AG, Kent, England
www.kbobm.org
The museum is the oldest established and largest collection of Battle of Britain artefacts on show in the country. It is privately run by enthusiasts and volunteers and is administered as a charitable trust.

Brooklands Museum

Brooklands Museum Trust Limited, Brooklands Road, Weybridge, KT13 0QN, Surrey, England
www.brooklandsmuseum.com/
From the very first attempts to fly in Britain through an exceptionally varied cavalcade of aircraft, Brooklands, the famous aviation site at Weybridge in Surrey, has witnessed and realised a greater range of aeronautical technology than anywhere else in the world.

Solent Sky Museum (previously Southampton Hall of Aviation)

Solent Sky Museum, Albert Road South, Southampton, SO14 3FR, Hampshire, England
www.spitfireonline.co.uk
The Solent Sky depicts the history of aviation in the Solent area and Hampshire. This small geographical area was arguably the most important area in the world for aircraft experimental and development work also for civil and military aircraft operation. The Museum tells the story of 26 aircraft companies, the largest flying boat operation in the world and in particular the legendary Spitfire designed at Supermarine by R.J.Mitchell in the heart of the City of Southampton.

de Havilland Aircraft Heritage Centre (incorporating the Mosquito Aircraft Museum)

PO. Box 107, Salisbury Hall, London Colney, AL2 1EX, Hertfordshire, England
www.dehavillandmuseum.co.uk
In September 1939 the de Havilland Aircraft Company established the Mosquito design team in Salisbury Hall, the Prototype Mosquito, E0234/W4050, subsequently being built in the adjacent buildings. There are over twenty aircraft in the collection.

South West

Fleet Air Arm Museum

Box D6, Royal Naval Air Station, Yeovilton, Nr. Ilchester, Yeovil, BA22 8HT, Somerset, England
www.fleetairarm.com
The Fleet Air Arm Museum was opened in May 1964 when it comprised just one hangar and eight aircraft. A charitable trust to formally administer the Museum was established in 1966.
The modest single hangar beginnings of the FAA Museum have been continually improved by the Trustees, starting with a major expansion programme in 1974-1980. The Museum now comprises four large exhibition halls with approximately 120,000 square feet of covered display space, able to display up to 50 aircraft at one time. In addition to the aircraft the museum has major supporting collections such as photographs, documents, medals, paintings and clothing.

Helicopter Museum

The Heliport, Locking Moor Road, Weston-super-Mare, BS22 8PL, Somerset, England
www.helicoptermuseum.co.uk
The origins of the Helicopter Museum goes back to 1958, when the founder, aviation writer/historian Elfan ap Rees, began to build up a private collection of rotorcraft?documentation and artifacts.

Midlands

Thinktank: Birmingham science museum

Millennium Point, Curzon Street, Birmingham, B4 7XG, West Midlands, England
www.thinktank.ac
Thinktank is Birmingham Science Museum and an exciting attraction. It examines the past, investigates the present, and explores what the future may bring. Here you can understand how science and technology have been developed. Explore Thinktank’s stories about Birmingham’s past and the inventions that changed peoples’ lives: www.birminghamstories.co.uk

Royal Air Force Museum, Cosford

Royal Air Force Museum, Cosford, Shifnal, TF11 8UP, Shropshire, England
www.rafmuseum.org
The Royal Air Force Museum at Cosford houses one of the largest aviation collections in the United Kingdom. Over 70 historic aircraft are displayed in three wartime hangars on an active airfield. The collection spans nearly 80 years of aviation history.

East Anglia

Imperial War Museum, Duxford

Imperial War Museum Duxford, Cambridge, CB2 4QR, Cambridgeshire, England
www.iwm.org.uk/duxford/index.htm
Duxford is Europe's premier aviation museum - as well as having one of the finest collections of tanks, military vehicles and naval exhibits in the country. This famous heritage site began as an airfield in the First World War and also played a vital role in the Second World War, firstly as an RAF fighter station and later as an American fighter base.

The Shuttleworth Collection

Old Warden Park, Biggleswade, SG18 9EP, Bedfordshire, England
www.shuttleworth.org/
The Shuttleworth Collection - A Celebration of Flight The Shuttleworth Collection was founded in 1928 by Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth. It is in a quiet countryside setting, actually on an old fashioned all grass aerodrome with eight hangars. These hangars comprise an aeroplane engineering workshop, a garage and coachroom, and the remainder house the world famous collection of over 40 aircraft. A number of vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles can also be viewed in the newly built hangar 7 extension. The Collection of Historic vehicles and aeroplanes is unique in that everything is kept in working condition and are demonstrated at events throughout the year.

North East

North East Aircraft Museum

North East Aircraft Museum, Washington Road, Sunderland, SR5 3HZ, Tyne & Wear, England
www.neam.co.uk
The museum is situated on the edge of Sunderland, adjacent to the Nissan car factory. It is run primarily by volunteers and welcomes new members.

Newark Air Museum

Newark Air Museum, Winthorpe Showground, Newark, NG24 2NY, Nottinghamshire, England
www.newarkairmuseum.org/
The first aircraft have been moved into our new Aircraft Display Hall on the Southfield Site. Following the successful 'on-time' completion of the of the project by principle contractor Turnstyle Engineering, the museum's Jet Provost T3A XM383 and Lockheed T33A '5547' became the first aircraft to be moved into the new building .These aircraft moves will take place in the coming months and eventually culminate in more than twelve aircraft being displayed inside the new Aircraft Display Hall.?The construction of the South Field Site Aircraft Display Hall has been made possible thanks to a grant of £453,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund and a major fund raising effort by the museum volunteers and visitors.

Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre

East Kirkby Airfield, East Kirkby, Nr Spilsby, PE23 4DE, Lincolnshire, England
www.lincsaviation.co.uk/
There is an Aircraft Museum based on a 1940's Bomber Airfield. Avro Lancaster Bomber NX611 'Just Jane'. Original Control Tower; RAF Escaping Society. Air Raid Shelter; War Time Blast Shelter; Chapel Original Barnes Wallis Bouncing Bomb. Squadron and Airfield photographs, Personal Stories and many original vehicles.

Royal Air Force Digby Sector Operations Room Museum

Royal Air Force Digby, "L" Sector Operations Room Museum, Lincoln, LN4 3LH, Lincolnshire, England
www.airops.freeserve.co.uk/digbyops/home/main.htm
Royal Air Force Digby, Lima Sector Operations Room Museum is dedicated to those who served and fought in support of freedom at home and abroad during World War Two. It also allows later generations to experience how a great victory was achieved.
The museum has been restored to resemble its appearance at the start of World War Two. The display centres on the main operations room, complete with plotting table, state boards, period furniture and equipment and contemporary side offices. The remaining rooms contain photographic and documentary archives, equipment displays, an exhibition of RAF roundels, wartime radios, model displays and a collection of some substantial aircraft parts, including 2 Merlin engines.

Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre

Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre, Westmoor Farm, Nr. Metheringham, LN4 3BQ, Lincolnshire, England
www.airops.freeserve.co.uk/mavc/
During 1942, around 600 acres of farmland and woods were cleared to create a new airfield for 5 Group, Bomber Command. Situated between the villages of Metheringham and Martin, the airfield opened in October 1943. Today, there are still signs of this once active airfield. On the Communual Site, where many original buildings remain, the former ration store has been restored and now houses a fascinating exhibition of photographs and memorabilia recalling life on an operational Second World War airfield.

Battle Of Britain Memorial Flight Visitor Centre

RAF Coningsby, Coningsby, LN4 4SY, Lincolnshire, England
www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/section.asp?catId=2690
The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight operates a Lancaster, five Spitfires, two Hurricanes, two Chipmunks, and a Dakota. In 1986, under a unique arrangement between Lincolnshire County Council and the Royal Air Force, it became possible to view these historic aircraft at their base at RAF Coningsby.?These aircraft are no museum pieces they are all still flying and can be seen at a variety of air shows in the summer months.?Since 1986, the Visitor Centre has welcomed over 300,000 people, all of whom have received a guided tour.?Many others visit to view the permanent gallery and temporary exhibitions.

North West

The Museum of Science & Industry in Manchester

Liverpool Road, Castlefield, Manchester, M3 4FP, England
www.msim.org.uk
Situated in the oldest passenger railway buildings in the world, the Museum tells the story of the history, science and industry of Manchester - the world's first industrial city.

Imperial War Museum North

Trafford Wharf Road, Trafford Park, Manchester, M17 1TZ, England
www.iwm.org.uk/north/index.htm
Imperial War Museum North, which opened to visitors on 5 July 2002, is one of the most talked-about new museums in the country and has already received almost a million visitors. It is on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal in Trafford, in a spectacular award-winning building designed by the internationally renowned architect, Daniel Libeskind.
The Museum tells the story of how war has affected the lives of British and Commonwealth citizens since 1914. It is the 5th branch of the Imperial War Museum and the first outside the South East of England. Recent winner of a Silver Award for Visitor Attraction of the Year 2004 at the Excellence in England Awards, and recipient of a Special Commendation (second-only to First Prize) in the European Museum of the Year Awards 2004, the Museum has recently been a finalist in the prestigious RIBA Stirling Award.