A unique museum in the world

Founded in 1919 and inaugurated at the legendary Le Bourget Paris airport in 1975, the French Air and Space Museum is one of the leading aviation museums in the world, both in age and in the richness of its collections: there are over 400 aircraft, all of them authentic.

Visitors can relive the whole aviation and space era, including:

• the beginnings of aviation with the original models of the very first flying machines;
• great air raids with the famous “Oiseau Canari” and “Point d’Interrogation”;
• military aviation with aircraft from the French Air Force and the legendary “Warbirds”;
• the adventure of vertical flight, started in France just over a century ago;
• the heyday of commercial flights with two Concorde, including the first to have flown;
• a Boeing 747 that can be explored in detail, from the hold to the cockpit;
• the conquest of space with the Space Hall;
• the planetarium and the discovery of the universe.

“Planète Pilote” is a dedicated area for youngsters, opened in 2010, offering a great introduction to all things air-related. And throughout the year the Air and Space Museum will host exhibitions, festivals, fly-ins and special evening events. The museum’s collection also includes: 1,000 engines, thousands of works of art, objects, airborne flight instruments, 10,000 manufacturers’ drawings and manuals, 100,000 books and posters, several hundred thousand photos and films, 1 million magazines as well as acquisitions throughout the year!
Plus, situated under the wings of the B747 is a brand new restaurant, “L’Hélice,” offering a panoramic view over the legendary tarmac of Paris Le Bourget airport.

 

Why the museum is sponsoring the Challenge

As the world’s leading aviation heritage site, the French Air and Space Museum has witnessed almost a century of the development of the flying machine. Through exhibitions and special events, some of which are real “think-tanks”, the museum encourages tomorrow’s engineers and pilots to continue the innovations undertaken by their predecessors. Acting as a bridge between the past and the future, the museum also has an educational role: in 2010, it opened a unique space dedicated to the youngest generation: “Planète Pilote”.
It is only natural therefore that the museum should support the Student Aerospace Challenge, alongside the air industry. This year once again, all the museum staff will be delighted to experience the “Suborbital Day” and to welcome the winners of this great challenge for the prize giving ceremony.

 

Practical information

Air and Space Museum
Aéroport de Paris Le Bourget – Esplanade de l'Air et de l'Espace
BP173 - 93352 Le Bourget Cedex
Tel. +33 (0)1 49 92 70 00
Restaurant : +33 (0)1 48 35 30 49

10 min. from Paris and Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport.
Free entry to the permanent collections.
Planète Pilote : 6 €
Special ‘plane rate with activities (Concorde, B747, Dakota, Super Frelon): 9 €

The Museum is open every day except Monday, 25 December and 1 January.
Open from Tuesday to Sunday:
10h00 to 18h00 in the period 1 April to 30 September,
and 10h00 to 17h00 from 1 October to 31 March.

Find us on www.museeairespace.fr, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and DailyMotion.